Russian business consulting website reported on May 15 that the production dynamics of Russian cement market deteriorated seriously in March 2018. The consultancy estimated that the output decreased by 12.1% compared with March last year, with a reduction of nearly 500000 tons, while according to the data of the Russian Federal State Statistics Bureau, the output decreased by 12.7%.
Cement production dynamics are in line with rail freight data, which fell 13.4% in March compared with the same period last year. At the same time, producer inventories increased. A year ago, Russia's national cement inventory averaged 11.1 days, while in March 2018, the settlement time of inventory sales increased to 14.3 days. This indicates a drop in demand.
In the first quarter of 2018, the production dynamics of cement market in different regions were extremely unbalanced. Cement production in the Northwest Federal District increased by 7%, but the increase was mainly due to a lower base last year. At the same time, only the Saint Petersburg Cement Plant safeguarded the growth dynamics, while other producers in the North-West Federal District experienced a decline in production. The situation of cement production in the Siberian Federal District is better, with an increase of 1%. Production in the North Caucasus Federal District fell sharply by 14.4%, with a 30% reduction in March. The production of the Far East Federal District declined rapidly. Cement production in the Southern Confederation fell 5.7% in the first quarter and 10% in March.
Official statistics showed that the economy was uneven in March. Industrial production increased by 1% compared with March 2017, freight turnover increased by 6.7% year-on-year, and railway transportation increased by 4.2%. The situation in the construction industry deteriorated seriously, with the actual construction volume in March shrinking by 9.7% compared with the same period last year. Meanwhile, housing construction continued to grow, rising 11.3% in March and 11.9% in the first quarter.
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