KUCHING, Feb 12: CMS Cement Industries Sdn Bhd (CMSCI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cahya Mata Sarawak Berhad (CMSB), has announced an adjustment to cement prices by an average of 10 per cent depending on product types and location, effective Feb 17.
CMSCI said the price increase is due to significant and sustained rising cost of raw and packaging materials as well as freight charges.
“Over the year, cement production cost has increased by an average of nine per cent, and in view of the current macro-environment, CMSCI expects its production costs to continue on an upward trend,” it said in a statement today.
The increase in cement prices, CMSCI said, is inevitable following the steep rise in global dry bulk freight rates, 64 per cent rise in the benchmark Baltic Dry Index showing rates and 33 per cent in the sack kraft paper index.
Following the price adjustments, the average unit price of cement in Sarawak remains competitive compared with other regions in Malaysia, especially now as prices of cement in both Sabah and Peninsular Malaysia have been increasing over the last several months.
As a further comparison, the prices of other building materials such as steel have also surged across the board since January 2021.
The Building Materials Cost Index (BCI) has increased by 2.3 per cent in Peninsular Malaysia, while the BCI saw increases of 2.1 per cent and 1.5 per cent in Sabah and Sarawak respectively during this period.
“Since 2016, CMSCI has maintained the selling price of cement and absorbed any increases in production costs due to its commitment to supporting the development and growth of Sarawak’s infrastructure, but the recent rise in costs makes increasing the price of cement unavoidable in order to sustain the quality of its products and services.
“CMSCI intends to maintain its customer-centric and supplier-focused role as the leading provider of quality cement in Sarawak while sustaining excellence in operations,” it assured.
Moving forward, CMSCI plans to further expand its range of eco-friendly cement products in the market.
In addition to the Portland Limestone Cement (PLC 32.5N) launched in 2019, CMSCI will also in the second half of 2022 be launching the Portland Composite Cement (PCC 42.5N) which is categorised as blended cement and features the same strength class as the Portland Cement 42.5N.
Through these product offerings, CMSCI is able to provide customers with a range of cement product types to meet their various project requirements at different price points.
“At the Group level, CMSB remains committed to supporting Sarawak’s development plans including the vision of becoming a developed State by 2030.
“As one of the key local private sector investors and a major supplier of construction materials and services in the State, the Group reassures all stakeholders that the price adjustment was implemented only after careful deliberations,” said CMSCI. — Dayakdaily
