HK Stock Market Move | WESTCHINACEMENT(02233) falls by over 4% again, causing market concerns over the impact of the devaluation of the Ethiopian birr on profits. Institutions have indicated that domestic and international cement prices are expected to increase.

WESTCHINACEMENT (02233) falls by more than 4%, down 20% from its December high. As of press time, it is down 3.85%, trading at 1.5 Hong Kong dollars with a turnover of 30.1683 million Hong Kong dollars. Tianfeng pointed out that previously, the market was mainly concerned about the impact of the devaluation of Ethiopian Birr on the profit of WESTCHINACEMENT. In early November, the Minister of Trade and Regional Integration of Ethiopia announced the cessation of the previous cement trade arrangement, allowing cement plants to choose distributors and retailers independently. As a result of this event, the company's expected cement sales price in Ethiopia is expected to increase. However, there is still a gap between the market selling price and the expected price, and there are still expectations for a price increase in the future, with the impact of exchange rate fluctuations on profits being largely eliminated. The bank believes that prices in Mozambique and the Congo region remain high, with selling prices per ton maintained at $90/150+ per ton. Uzbekistan is at $50 per ton, and profits are stable. Looking domestically, in the second half of the year, with price increases in the Shaanxi region, it is expected that the company's selling price per ton will recover to around 300 yuan/ton, with an annual average of 250 yuan/ton. There are expectations for a continued increase in the price of cement in the domestic market in 2025.