Recently, the price of cement in Nigeria has broken through a record high again. According to the latest April commodity price report released by the Financial Derivatives Corporation (FDC), the average price of 50 kilograms of cement has climbed to 9700 naira per bag (equivalent to 886 yuan/ton), up 15.48% from 8400 naira in March 2024. This price not only set a new record in 2025, but also aroused widespread concern in the market and the government.
Cement prices continue to rise.
At present, the leading enterprises in Nigeria's cement industry include Dangote Cement, BUA Cement, Lafarge Africa (WAPCO), Ibeto Cement, United Cement, Ashaka Cement, Niger Cement and Eagle Cement Corporation. These enterprises occupy the dominant position in the market, and the price trend directly affects the national construction cost.
Despite repeated calls from the Nigerian government for cement producers to lower prices, there has been no significant correction in the market. In February 2025, Nigerian Works Minister David Umahi publicly warned cement producers to reduce the price of cement to 7,000 naira per bag. He pointed out that the naira exchange rate has stabilized to 1,400 naira to the dollar from the previous rate of nearly 2,000 naira to the dollar, while fuel prices have also declined, which has created conditions for the reduction of cement prices. However, up to now, the price of cement has remained at a high level of 9700 naira and has not dropped significantly. "When the dollar was close to 2,000 naira, the price of cement rose from 7,500 naira,
" Umehi stressed in his speech. Now that the US dollar exchange rate has stabilized at 1400 naira, why should the price of cement be sold to 9500 naira? "We demand that the producer reduce the price to 7,000 naira or file a formal complaint with the President."
However, despite repeated pressure from the government, cement producers have not responded to the call. The big three in Nigeria's cement industry – Dangote Cement, BUA Cement and Lafarge Africa – have posted significant sales growth over the past year,
despite high cement prices. However, due to the fluctuation of foreign exchange rate, these enterprises also suffered huge foreign exchange losses, which affected the overall net profit performance.
Specifically, the total sales of the three companies increased from 2.35 trillion naira in 2022 to 3.076 trillion naira in 2023, but the operating costs also increased from 799.79 billion naira in 2022 to 910.99 billion naira in 2023. This shows that despite the growth in sales, cost pressures remain significant. The Game between
Government and Market: When Will the Price of Cement Fall? The rising price of
cement not only increases the cost pressure of the construction industry, but also has an impact on the lives of ordinary people. Mr Umehi had warned that the government would take further measures if cement producers did not lower prices. However, up to now, the market has not seen a significant adjustment.
Analysts pointed out that the rise in cement prices may be related to production costs, transportation costs and increased market demand. However, the government believes that the current stability of the naira exchange rate and the decline in fuel prices have created conditions for the reduction of cement prices.
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