KARACHI: Local cement sales and exports remained steady during March despite the Middle East war that started on Feb 28.

It also indicates that construction activities remained normal, followed by an increase in exports despite higher war risk and freight charges.

According to data from the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA), total cement dispatches (local sales and exports) during March increased by one per cent year-on-year to 3.745 million tonnes.

However, local sales in March fell by 0.20pc year-on-year to 3.097m tonnes due to the Ramazan and Eid holidays. In contrast, exports increased by 6.56pc to 648,564 tonnes.

During 9MFY26, total cement despatches (domestic and exports) reached 38.54m tonnes, a rise of 9.80pc from 35.1m tonnes during the same period in the previous fiscal year.

Domestic despatches surged by 10.61pc to 31.6m tonnes from 28.56m tonnes during the same period last fiscal year, while exports rose by 6.25pc to 6.94m tonnes from 6.53m tonnes during the same period last fiscal year.

An APCMA spokesman said that current geopolitical tensions are posing serious threats to the manufacturing sectors. Cement is an energy-intensive industry, and the current volatility in oil prices and coal will have serious effects due to cost escalations and disruptions in supply chains.

Rabia Yousuf of Topline Securities said that the total cement capacity utilisation in March was estimated at 52pc, compared to 60pc in February and 53pc in March 2025.

Published in Dawn, April 2nd, 2026