India beats the economic crisis
Summary: India has been largely spared by the global economic crisis. Although the country’s economic growth decreased to 6.7 % in 2008 after 9 % previously, the Economic Advisory Council in India is already forecasting a slightly increase to 7.7 % for 2009. For the next three years, India will have an increase in cement consumption of around 10 % per year. Up to the end of FY 2012, the per capita cement consumption is expected to rise from the present 153 kg to 193 kg. New cement production capacities will increase by at least 83 Mta in the next three years, which exceeds the forecast of 55.6 Mta growth in cement output by 49 %. Correspondingly, a distinct deterioration in capacity utilization has to be expected, from the present 83 % to 78 % or less.
Mahatma Gandhi coined the phrase “India lives in its villages”. Even today, 71 % of the 1.17 billion population of India live in the countryside. However, as a consequence of the economic development, a dramatic urbanization has taken place in recent years. The UN’s Urbanisation Report [1] forecasts that from 2007 to 2025 an additional 197 million people will populate the towns and cities of India and by 2050 this figure will increase by a further 377 million. The proportion of urban population will thus rise to 37.2 % by 2025 and then to 55.2 % by 2050. Cities like Mumbai,...
