The Global Cement Industry: the market

Exclusive extracts from this 124-page-long report:

- What is the business?

Cement manufacturers are vertically integrated, with core activities consisting of the production of aggregates (sand, gravel and crushed rock) and asphalt (a mixture of aggregates and bitumen, which is used as a top layer in roads). Companies are also involved in cement trading and distribution/retail. Land transportation costs are significant and cement cannot be economically shipped beyond a distance of 300km. This means that both multinational and smaller-scale companies operate local/regional production sites. […]

- What are the main markets?

Emerging countries, China and India first and foremost, are the world's biggest consumers of cement owing to their demographic growth, rapid urbanisation and strong economic performances. Since cement transportation is neither practical nor cheap, cement tends to be produced where it will be consumed. With cement consumption increasingly shifting to emerging economies, cement plants are following suit. While emerging countries accounted for 65% of cement supply in the 1990s, they made up 90% of the world's production in 2017. […]

- How intense is competition?

The industry is fairly consolidated globally, with LafargeHolcim and HeidelbergCement by far the two biggest producers. International players are however set to face greater competition at the regional level as top competitors in more fragmented national/regional markets such as China (Anhui Conch), India (UltraTech) and Africa (Dangote) are building up significant capacities and becoming increasingly influential. […]

0. Conclusions

1. Market Fundamentals

1.1. Overview

1.2. The Industry

2. Market Environment and Prospects

2.1. Market Environment

2.2. Demand

2.3. Supply

2.4. International Trade

3. Corporate Strategies and Competition

3.1. Competitive Environment

3.2. Structure of Competition

3.3. Corporate Strategies

4. Case Studies

5. Statistical Appendix

6. Sources

7. Annexes