CEE Jul-Sep-2012

in infrastructure, rising demand from the housing sector and construction recovery. Recent industry developments and the government's supportive polices are attracting global cement giants and sparking off the construction of new plants across the country. Despite the economic crisis, which dented the construction industry and disturbed the cement supply-demand matrix, the Russian cement industry has shown excellent recovery over the past few years. In view of stable economic conditions and recuperating housing construction, cement demand grew vigorously in 2010 . Producers now seek to increase the capacity of cement demand growth while maintaining positive price trends. Russia has grown significantly during the last two decades to acquire the position of the eighth largest cement consumer in the world. Although the country's share in global cement consumption was just 1.5 per cent in 2010 , with intensifying cement consumption and fast expanding production capacities, it is all set to occupy the third spot within the next 4 - 5 years. Market segmentation On the supply front, cement production in Russia is expected to grow at a CAGR of around 8 per cent from 2011- 2015 to reach 72.6 million tpa. This is on the back of strong demand from retail, housing and infrastructure sectors. Additionally, many major producers have announced plans to increase their production capacity during the forecasted period, which will further boost the country's production level. For instance, in the Volgograd region. CJSC Volga-Cement, with its 1.3 million t capacity, is ready to start building a new cement plant. To further the project, worth US$ 343 million, the company is ready to offer a 74 per cent stake in the new plant to a strategic investor. Moreover, the Central and Volga regions have traditionally experienced increasing cement production , although Volga's share was dented during the economic crisis. Although these two regions together contribute over 40 per cent of the cement production in Russia, capacity in these regions is under-utilized, which itself leaves vast opportunity for production growth in the coming years. Cement pricing analysis Cement prices in Russia their post-crisis bottom in 2010 and any further decline is unlikely in the short run. Prices were projected average US$80/t in 2011 (which implies around 16% y/y increase), While average total operating costs/t were expected to be close to US$55 - US$60/t. This profitability margin is not expected to shrink further without threatening to undermine sustainability of cement production, which can be seen as a gradual improvement of the markets' fundamentals. Given the probable increase in production costs, including such key inputs as fuel and electricity, it is expected that, in the future, cement producers will be able to shift their increasing costs of production onto consumers. Courtesy: Cement and Concrete World, Jan-Feb. 2012, Pp40-43. EMPLOYEES REPORT SICK TO CHILL OUT AT HOME: SURVEY A global survey has found that many employees call in sick from work just to watch television or stay in bed when they are not suffering from any illness, with those in India and China leading the charts. Employees surveyed in India, Australia, Canada, China, France, Great Britain, Mexico and the US, have all admitted to varying degrees that they have called in sick when they were not actually sick, a survey commissioned by The Workforce Institute at Kronos has revealed. China led all other surveyed regions with 71 per cent of employees admitting to pretending to be sick, followed by India with 62 per cent, Australia (58 per cent), Canada (52 per cent), the US (52 per cent), Great Britain (43 per cent) and Mexico (38 per cent). France had the smallest number with only 16 per cent, the survey said . Of the surveyed, 44 per cent employees in India said they called in sick because they felt stressed or needed a day off. In India and Mexico staying home and watching TV was the top choice followed by meeting up with friends and relatives. When asked what their employers could do to prevent this practice, most employees around the world felt that the opportunity to work from home and to take unpaid leave could help reduce this practice. About 24 per cent workforce in India also felt that providing more paid time off to employees would make a difference. "The majority of employees in all regions said they were negatively impacted when co-workers called in sick, with the top reason being that they had to take on the work or shift of the missing employee," the report said. These kind of unscheduled absences, like when an employee calls in sic at the last minute, cost organizations 8. 7 per cent of payroll each year, the survey said. Courtesy: The Hindu Business Une, Mumbai, 18.06. 2012. 39 ... _