Holcim Romania, the fully-owned subsidiary of Swiss-based cement maker Holcim, reported a 14.7% decline in cement and clinker sales for the first nine months this year compared to the same period of last year, according to the group’s quarterly financial report.
In Q1-Q3, prices increased 2%, according to the report.
In contrast with the results of its peers, Lafarge Romania and Carpatcement Holding, the Swiss cement-maker performed better under recessionary conditions, as Lafarge’s sales in Romania fell 34.4% while Carpatcement’s sales dropped 16%.
The situation in Eastern and Southeastern Europe was influenced by the heavy economic slump. The weakest sales were recorded in Slovakia (-49.4%), Bulgaria (-42.6%) and Spain (-35.2%).
“Holcim Romania saw all segments fall short of last year's volumes. The situation was particularly difficult in Bulgaria, where not only weak construction activity but also large volumes of cement imports from Turkey weighed on the cement industry”, the company said in its quarterly report.
Holcim’s sales were highest in Switzerland (-2.2%), Germany (-5.9%) and Belgium (-10.3%).
The group’s net sales fell to €10.4 billion (15.7 billion Swiss francs), from €12.8 billion (19.3 billion Swiss francs) in the same period of last year. Operating profit dropped 25% from €2 billion to €1.5 billion.
Early October, Holcim Romania announced the completion of a €11.5 million investment in a construction materials storage and distribution facility.
