Semen Gresik 1H cement sales fall

Semen Gresik 1H cement sales fall

JAKARTA: PT Semen Gresik of Indonesia said Monday its total
cement sales during the first half of 2002 fell 5.6 percent to 7
million metric tons from 7.418 million tons during the same
period last year.

Gresik said the fall was due to a decline of its cement
exports volume during the six months.

It also attributed the decline to the impact of severe floods
in January and February which disrupted the company's
distribution network, and production problems at its cement plant
in Tuban, East Java.

During the first six months, Semen Gresik's domestic cement
sales rose 6.2 percent to 5.651 million tons from 5.32 million
tons last year.

Exports, however, declined 36 percent to 1.348 million tons
from 2.098 million tons. -- Dow Jones