DTI won't stop surge in cement importations

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) will not lift a finger to curb the surge in the importation of cement, saying it has achieved the goal of stabilizing domestic cement prices to benefit consumers.

Trade and Industry Undersecretary Ernesto Ordoñez told reporters that the DTI is avoiding the spiraling of cement prices which were about to hit P145 per bag in the retail market when the government announced that it was encouraging importation.

Ordoñez said this is in keeping with earlier pronouncements made by Trade and Industry Secretary Manuel Roxas II who said constructors would not be admonished for importing their cement requirements if only to prevent prices from spiraling out of control.

Local cement manufacturers earlier reported that imported cement now accounts for over one fourth of the total cement supply and close to 45 percent of the stocks in Metro Manila, displacing at least five local cement companies in Luzon.

Data from the Philippine Cement Manufacturers Corp. (Philcemcor) reveal that imports mainly from Taiwan and Japan have risen steadily over the last few months, from 94,000 metric tons in January this year to as much as 130,000 in April.

Philcemcor managing director Lupo Feliciano said there was a surge in importation last month and the first to succumb were Luzon-based cement companies that supply the Metro Manila market.

According to Feliciano, falling casualty to the influx of imported cement were Solid Cement based in Antipolo, FR Cement in Pasig, Republic Cement, Continental Cement and Hi-Cement all in Norzagaray, Bulacan.

Feliciano said importation increased steadily despite the stabilizing domestic prices, and imports continued to displace Luzon-based cement companies through predatory pricing.

"If local prices are not moving, they don't move either," Feliciano explained. "They just make sure that their cement is priced between P5 to P7 lower than domestic cement."

If not for this surge in importation, however, Ordoñez said prices would have spiraled out of control. "Remember prices were about to go up and up," he said. "The good news here is that prices have stabilized.