A cement production line at La Hien Cement VVMI JSC in the northern province of Thai Nguyen. — VNA/VNS Photo Hoang Nguyen

Exports of cement and clinker reached an impressive figure of about 19.26 million tonnes in the first five months of this year, increasing by 50 per cent over the same period last year.

Cement consumption is estimated at 45.83 million tonnes from the beginning of the year, up about 16 per cent year-on-year.

Consumption in the domestic market reached about 26.57 million tonnes, a year-on-year growth of 9 per cent.

Data from the Building Materials Department, Ministry of Construction, estimated cement consumption would reach about 10.79 million tonnes last month, up about 12 per cent from last year.

Domestic consumption was about 6.49 million tonnes and exports estimated at 4.3 million tonnes.

In terms of prices, the domestic price of cement last month is comparable to that of April. Meanwhile, export prices saw a slight increase.

Explaining the strong growth in cement export volume, Luong Duc Long, vice president cum general secretary of the Viet Nam Cement Association (VNCA), said the country had expanded its cement exports in developing countries.

However, Long also said exports of cement to these markets were unsustainable because these countries were also focusing on developing the domestic cement industry to meet the demand for domestic cement consumption.

Therefore, Viet Nam's cement manufacturing and exporting enterprises should focus on improving their competitiveness and product quality in the export markets to be more stable and sustainable. — VNS