CEMEX Holdings Philippines Inc. said its income dropped 46 percent during the first half of the year ending June as a result of depressed prices of cement products and higher operating expenses.
The company added its profit for the period dropped to P486 million from last year’s P896 million as prices declined in response to heightened competitive conditions and continuing presence of imports in the markets.
Net sales dropped 14 percent to P10.98 billion, from last year’s P12.71 billion.
Domestic gray cement volumes declined by 3 percent during second quarter due to weak demand growth, with delayed infrastructure spending and stable growth in the private sector.
A longer-than-expected shutdown of its APO Cement Plant in Cebu during the second quarter also affected cement output, the company said.
On a quarter-on-quarter basis, cement volumes in the second quarter increased by 6 percent compared with January to March.
Financial expenses for the first half of 2017 declined by 34 percent as a result of the refinancing of Cemex’s US-dollar denominated loan with local debt.
With the conversion and denomination to local currency, other financial expenses for the first half of the year, of mostly foreign exchange losses, also declined 57 percent for the first half of the year.
“I am confident that the company’s resilience and proven operational excellence, demonstrated throughout the years, will allow us to strengthen our current position,” said Ignacio Mijares, who was recently elected as president and CEO. “Together with the Philippine government’s positive outlook for construction activity, we remain optimistic for the second half of 2017.”