The cement industry remains sluggish. How did Anhui Conch Cement achieve a profit of 8.1 billion yuan and record its first increase in five years?

In 2025, against the backdrop of continued weak demand and price pressure in the cement industry, Conch Cement (600585) achieved its first positive net profit growth in the past five years.

On March 24, Conch Cement disclosed its latest annual report, stating that in 2025, it achieved revenue of 82.532 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 9.33%; net profit was 8.113 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.42%. The company indicated that during the reporting period, affected by the decline in the prices of its main products, the main revenue decreased by 6.39% year-on-year, but benefited from improved operational efficiency and cost reductions, net profit increased year-on-year.

According to the report, in 2025, Conch Cement enhanced its cost control through technological innovation, strengthened logistics management, increased the use of alternative fuels, and optimized procurement channels for raw materials, resulting in a year-on-year decrease of 11.12% in the comprehensive cost of self-produced cement clinker.

From the perspective of gross profit margins of segmented products, the effectiveness of cost control is evident. During the reporting period, the gross profit margins of Conch Cement’s self-produced 42.5-grade cement, 32.5-grade cement, and clinker increased by 2.88 percentage points, 6.28 percentage points, and 11.39 percentage points, respectively. The comprehensive gross profit margin for aggregates and manufactured sand was 40.13%, a year-on-year decrease of 6.78 percentage points; the comprehensive gross profit margin for ready-mixed concrete was 12.38%, a year-on-year increase of 2.38 percentage points.

During this period, Conch Cement continued to expand and transform. The announcement showed that in 2025, Conch Cement coordinated the advancement of industrial development and project construction, focusing domestically on cement core business development, completing the acquisition of the Xinjiang Yaobai project, and the Fenyang Conch relocation project was put into production on schedule. The new cement mills in Wuhu Conch and Congyang Conch were put into operation on time; overseas projects progressed steadily, with the Phnom Penh Conch in Cambodia successfully built and operational. At the same time, the industry chain extended further, with nine aggregate projects in Congyang, Yingde, and other locations completed and put into production, adding 22 new ready-mixed concrete sites, and continuously expanding market coverage. Additionally, efforts to accelerate the development of consumer building materials were made, with 13 dry-mixed mortar, tile adhesive projects, and one putty powder project completed and put into production.

As of the end of 2025, Conch Cement had a clinker production capacity of 234 million tons, a cement production capacity of 415 million tons, and an aggregate production capacity of 180 million tons, with an operational ready-mixed concrete capacity of 70.25 million cubic meters.

For 2026, Conch Cement plans to achieve a total sales volume of 260 million tons for cement and clinker self-produced products. In terms of capital expenditure, the company plans to invest 11.82 billion yuan for core business project development, upstream and downstream industry chain extension, energy-saving and environmental protection technological transformation, and the cultivation of new productive forces.

As of the close on March 25, Conch Cement was trading at 23.34 yuan per share, with a total market capitalization of 123.686 billion yuan.