Cement enterprises suspend kilns

　　As of last weekend, various regions have successively issued winter kiln suspension plans. Among them, cement enterprises in Jiangsu and Zhejiang plan to suspend production for maintenance for 35 days from January to February, with enterprises arranging their own schedules; Shandong plans to suspend kilns for maintenance for 40 days, and most enterprises are expected to start suspension in early to mid-January, with Zaozhuang and Linyi implementing the Huaihai regional kiln suspension plan; Sichuan plans that each kiln line in the province will suspend production for maintenance for no less than 30 days in the first quarter; in addition, production suspension and maintenance plans for enterprises in some areas such as Chaohu in Anhui, Jiangxi, Hunan, Hubei, and Guangdong are still under discussion and are expected to be announced later; in other areas without unified plans, enterprises will carry out routine off-season production suspension and maintenance, typically lasting about 15 days.

　　Compared with the same period last year, this year's off-season kiln suspension plans in various regions are basically the same in scope and intensity, but the current national average price of high-grade cement is 8% higher than the same period last year, and the average price in East China is even 22% higher year-on-year. The profitability of cement enterprises has improved significantly compared with the same period last year. Analysis of the reasons mainly shows that the rush-work demand in various parts of the south continues to maintain a good level. At the same time, haze control actions in various regions continue to advance, the process of eliminating outdated capacity has accelerated, and the supply-demand relationship has improved significantly.

　　According to the latest report from Digital Cement Network, Langfang City in Hebei Province has launched a concentrated special rectification action for key industries such as cement and steel, accelerating the shutdown of enterprises that do not meet environmental protection requirements and concentrating on dismantling heavily polluting capacity equipment. Among them, 11 cement enterprises were dismantled, involving a capacity of 3.77 million tons. Analysts predict that this year, with the establishment of long-term mechanisms for air pollution control across the country, the pace of eliminating outdated capacity in various regions will accelerate; at the same time, in order to meet the new cement air emission standards, 85% of cement enterprises nationwide will undergo denitrification modifications in the next year or more, which may affect about 10% to 15% of industry capacity during the off-season and will support cement prices in the off-season.

　　Data from Digital Cement Network shows that last week, the national average cement market price remained flat compared with the previous week, continuing to maintain the high level since the current price increase.

　　The latest statistics from major regions show that last week, cement prices in some areas of Southwest China rose slightly. Among them, Mianyang, Deyang, Ziyang, and Zizhong in Sichuan, affected by the control of overloading, saw cement prices increase by 15 to 20 yuan per ton again; cement prices in East China remained stable. Although the market has entered the off-season, due to good weather conditions, downstream demand in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shanghai, Anhui, and Jiangxi has not shrunk significantly. Coupled with consistently low enterprise inventories, cement prices have continued their previous stable trend; cement prices in Central South China remained largely stable with minor fluctuations. Some enterprises in Fusui, Baise, and Guigang in Guangxi increased rebates and indirectly lowered cement prices by 10 to 20 yuan per ton.