China’s cement sector appears to have entered an era of consolidation, with China Tianrui Group Cement (1252.HKG) increasing its stake in China Shangshui Cement Group (0691.HKG) to 28.16%, enough to prompt Fitch Ratings to deem the move a change of control, Bloomberg reported. Shanshui Cement, which reported profit in 2014 equal to about a third of what it made the year before, has adopted a strategy of selling minority stakes to companies to raise money in an increasingly competitive environment. “The Chinese authorities’ approach to the sector is clear — they want consolidation,” said Kalai Pillay, a senior director at Fitch Ratings in Singapore.
Categories