Cement manufacturer Cemex Holdings Philippines Inc. (CHP) reported that its net loss almost tripled to P917.8 million in the first quarter of 2024 from the P335.5-million loss incurred in the same period last year.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, the firm said its revenues for the three months ended March 31, 2024 declined 15 percent to P3.9 billion from the P4.6 billion posted in the same period of 2023.
“Revenues decreased mainly due to lower cement price, as competitive dynamics remain intense, limiting the execution of our pricing strategy to recover profitability,” CHP said.
During the first quarter of 2024, the Company’s operations remained negatively affected by challenging market conditions, mainly resulting from intense industry competition, heightened by the presence of imported cement.
These conditions, together with soft cement demand which has prevailed over the last two years, have resulted in lower cement prices year-over-year, limiting the execution of the company’s pricing strategy to recover profitability.
Despite the impact of holidays related to Holy Week celebration in March, the company observed slight improvements in industry demand, based on average daily sales, at the regional and local levels during the first quarter of 2024.
The firm said it continues to optimize production and supply chain operations, fixed costs, operating expenses, and working capital, to counteract market challenges during the year.
Through these efforts, the company continued to show resilience, with significant cost containment efforts in fuels and enhanced operating efficiencies.
Also contributing to the firm’s losses for the period is the foreign exchange loss of P260.4 million it suffered in the first quarter of 2024 against forex gains of P281.5 million in the same period last year.
CHP was is being acquired by DMCI Holdings Inc. which aims to return the company to profitability by 2025 as it capitalizes on synergy with other DMCI subsidiaries such as Semirara Mining and Power Corporation, DM Consunji Inc. and DMCI Homes.