Thought cement stocks closed lower today, they witnessed an upward trend following an increase in cement prices by Rs 10-15 per bag in north India.
The four cement pivotals had moved up early today but closed slightly lower than the previous day, except for ACC, on intra-day trading. ACC ended up 0.29 per cent at Rs 138.15.
Grasim was down 0.11 per cent to Rs 317.75 after hitting an intra-day high of Rs 317.75, Gujarat Ambuja Cements was down 0.31 per cent to Rs 163, off its intra-day high of Rs 167 and Larsen & Toubro (L&T) was down 0.27 per cent to Rs 167, off its intra-day high of Rs 168.
The gains in cement shares today reflect the reports that leading cement manufacturers are hiking cement prices by Rs 10-15 per 50 kg bag in north India to Rs 130-133 on the back of rising cement sales volumes.
Cement makers are expecting a 20-25 per cent jump in cement demand in north India during the coming festival season.
Analysts say the hike should hold the cement industry in good stead. But any rally in cement stocks would be restricted by the fact that cement prices are still depressed in the major markets (western and southern India). Unless cement prices don
