Cutting excess capacity in China
China’s cement industry is at a crossroads. The gap between cement demand and supply has widened and production, sales, prices and profits have declined. However, cement producers’ cost control and self-discipline have improved and overseas expansion is increasingly regarded as a way to a better future.
1 China’s economic development
According to China’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBSC) the country’s economy expanded at an annual rate of 6.7 % in the first half of 2017. Property investment grew 8.5 % in the first half. Exports grew by 8.5 %, providing a 7.6 % growth of the manufacturing sector. The strong start in 2017 beat all market expectations and the growth rate is above the 6.5 % goal set by the government for the entire year. Figure 1 comprises the projections in the World Economy Outlook (WEO, April 2017) for China and its peers published by the International Monetary Fund (IMF)....