Cement price hiked again
Financial Express

Thumbing a nose at the government, cement manufacturers increased prices by Rs 3 a bag from Tuesday in the largest markets of Maharashtra and Gujarat, across both wholesale and retail markets. With major cement companies like ACC, Holcim, Ultratech and Grasim hiking prices, the impact of the hike is likely to be felt across India.

“We expect a hike of Rs 3-5 a bag this month. However, this will not have a significant impact on the market due to the increasing demand. We anticipate a price hike of Rs 3-5 a bag in October as well,” said Hitesh Agarwal of Angel Broking.

Cement prices in Mumbai’s wholesale market were around Rs 240-250 a bag, which will now average around Rs 253. At the same time, the retail price will be around Rs 268 a bag and institutional buyers will have to pay around Rs 242 a bag.

Industry experts feel the price hike might also spread to other regions like the north and the east. Says AK Sarogi, CFO, JK Cement, “The cost of production has definitely increased with the rise in the cost of wages and pet coke. We would certainly like to be compensated for that. However, the price increase in cement will depend on the market forces and the rise in demand.”

The construction lobby is extremely unhappy. “We expect cement prices to come down once imported cement flows into the market. Frequent price hikes are fuelling costs,” says Anand Gupta, chairman, Builders’ Association of India.