Cement prices to remain tepid as GST, Rera and monsoon hit demand

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) and Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 (Rera) implementation, together with good monsoons, cooled off cement prices across the country by 2-3 per cent on an average in the immediate months of the new tax regime. It is expected that prices will continue to remain low during the second quarter until the bulk of cement dealers move over to the new tax framework.

Sector analysts opined that the northern, central and eastern markets were particularly hit as most of the dealer base resorted to destocking in June in anticipation of GST and the