Cement prices increased by Rs 3-4 per bag:

Cement prices in certain parts of the country were increased by Rs 3 and Rs 4 for a 50-kg bag from Tuesday. Ambuja Cement, ACC, Ultratech, Grasim, Binani and others, have increased the prices due to supply shortage. Manufacturers seem to have taken the decision to raise prices after cement despatches shot up in January. Despatches from ACC, Aditya Birla and Ambuja Cement grew 12.5%, 7.35% and 4.84%, JK Lakshmi reported a 22% and Shree Cement reported 30% growth on yoy basis. But this high growth might be only a statistical blip, and attributed to the low base in January last year. The price hike may be also due to transportation bottlenecks could have contributed to the supply shortage. The shortage in supply could be because of the unavailability of railway rakes, as this is the harvest season and railways divert rakes for agricultural needs. Along with this good demand and improvement in despatches lead the companies for price hike. After the price hike, cement prices in Mumbai will range from Rs 232 to Rs 254 for every 50-kg bag. In north India, prices are in the region of Rs 190-Rs 220 a bag, in the south Rs 210-265 and in the east, between Rs 200 and Rs 230.