Cement and concrete prices drop in Abu Dhabi as demand weakens

Cement and concrete prices in Abu Dhabi fell this week by three and six per cent compared to the previous week, according to figures released by the Statistics Centre, Abu Dhabi.

Traders in the emirate are of the opinion that prices would fall further as demand continues to weaken across the region.

Prices of Al Etihad Portland Cement fell by three per cent, from Dh330 to Dh320 per tonne, compared to the previous week, while the price of sulphate resistant cement and white cement remained constant at Dh345 per tonne and Dh600 per tonne, respectively.

The demand in Abu Dhabi has been declining, but at a lesser rate compared to the other emirates.

"Although there has been an overall decline in demand during the past six to eight months, construction activity has slowed down further during Ramadan," said Ajay Mathur, General Manager of AAC Cement. According to him, the prices of cement could fall further although the demand could improve post Eid.

"The situation, especially in Dubai, is expected to improve by the end of 2009," said Mathur. "However, I am not sure if the trend will reflect in the movement of prices. At least for the next two months prices will continue to remain the same, if not drop further."

Ready-mix prices on the other hand fell by six per cent compared to the previous week. The price of normal ready-mix concrete (neutin 40) has gone down by six per cent from Dh330 per cubic metre last week to Dh310 per cubic metre this week. Meanwhile, the price of sulphate resistance ready-mix concrete fell this week by 5.79 per cent from Dh345 per cubic metre to Dh325 per cubic metre.

Ready-mix prices have been falling significantly and production at various plants drastically scaled down due to lack of sufficient demand.

One senior official from a ready-mix unit in Sharjah on Thursday said demand had dropped by almost 60 per cent. Several companies in Dubai recently told Emirates Business that they were selling at zero profit margin to attract customers.

However, prices of lime and gypsum have remained constant over the past few weeks with lime (Oman) and gypsum (Oman) priced at Dh1,250 and Dh442 per tonne, respectively.

Aggregates and sand fell by three per cent each for the same period. Crush ?aggregate declined by 2.6 per cent from Dh57.50 per cubic metre last week to Dh56 per cubic metre, while crush 3/8 aggregate reduced by 3.17 per cent from Dh65 per cubic metre last week to Dh63 per cubic metre. Price of black saks well sand too went down by 3.33 per cent dropping from Dh900 per metre last week to Dh870 per metre, while white sand and black sand remained stable at Dh32 per metre and Dh45 per metre, respectively.

 

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