Cemex posts 5% growth cement sales

Newly listed cement manufacturer Cemex Holdings Philippines reported a 5-percent year-on-year growth in the volume of cement sales in the first semester despite the flat volume reported in the second quarter.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Thursday, Cemex said the volume in the second quarter was flat, reflecting “a temporary slowdown in construction activity associated to June elections in the Philippines.”

The strong growth in the first quarter, however, made up for the slack in the second quarter.

Cemex’s Mexico-based parent firm, meanwhile, reported an 81-percent growth in second quarter net profit reaching $205 million – the highest second quarterly profit seen since 2008.

Free cash flow for the quarter stood at $422 million, an improvement of $359 million compared with the same quarter of 2015 and the highest in a second quarter since 2006. The company reported a reduction of close to $1.3 billion during the first half in its pro-forma total debt plus perpetual notes, which reflected the use of cash reserve and the proceeds from its Philippines transaction for debt reduction.

“This is an additional step in our path to reach an investment-grade capital structure as soon as possible,” said Fernando Gonzalez, chief executive officer at parent conglomerate Cemex.

Cemex recently listed its Philippine unit on the local stock exchange and raised P25.13 billion, of which about 75 percent came from foreign investors and 25 percent from local investors.

“Our solid second quarter and first half 2016 results demonstrate the resilience of our portfolio, which is largely comprised of high-growth markets that are experiencing attractive supply-demand conditions,” Gonzales said.

Cemex has yet to report the full financial results of the Philippine unit.

It reported, however, that operations in Africa, Middle East and Asia reported a 4-percent decrease in net sales for the second quarter to $407 million year-on-year.

In the Philippines, Cemex is the third largest cement producer with a share of around 20 percent of the sales volume in 2015, according to the Cement Industry Report. Doris Dumlao-Abadilla