Indocement sees sales rise

Indocement sees sales rise

JAKARTA: PT Indocement Tunggal Prakarsa, controlled by Germany's largest cement maker HeidelbergCement AG, said sales would probably rise at a faster pace in 2005, as the government was planning more roads and power plants.

Cement sales at the Jakarta-based company may increase by at least 10 percent next year from an expected 8 percent rise this year in line with industry growth, Finance Director Christian Kartawijaya said here on Thursday after a presentation to investors and analysts.

The company plans to cut exports to less than 20 percent of total sales, from 25 percent this year, to meet rising domestic demand, Christian said.

Indonesia, the world's fourth-most populous country with 235 million people, plans to increase spending for infrastructure to encourage investment and boost economic growth. Growth for 2005 is forecast at 5.4 percent, the fastest in nine years. -- Bloomberg