The Kings Cement World Will Merger ?

 The Kings Cement World Will Merger ?

Two cement companies , Lafarge SA of France and Holcim Ltd. of Switzerland , said it would soon finalize their merger valued at $ 50 billion . Merger between the two largest industrial companies in Europe reflects the economic slowdown in Europe and slowing growth in the world of construction .

Lafarge and Holcim , the two largest companies in the world cement industry , on Friday said it has entered an advanced stage in the merger discussions . Both regard this transaction as a " merger of two companies that parallel . "

Lafarge and Holcim merger can be faced with some challenges of monopoly watchdog , not to mention raising the political sensitivity in dozens of countries . But the two did not have a lot of options other than completing the merger if it is to reduce the production of excessive , especially when construction slows in the middle of some Asian countries . In addition , the industry is also troubled by the increasing political disputes in the Middle East - one of the major markets - as well as the slow pace of economic recovery from the European debt crisis .

Lafarge and Holcim are the backbone of modern development . Both provide the raw materials for urbanization in many developing countries , from the skyscrapers in the Philippines until the shopping center and residential in Morocco . Based on volume , seven billion people consume more cement Earth than other commodities , except water .

Born in Europe more than 100 years ago , Lafarge and Holcim has expanded overseas . Today , more than half of its revenues come from outside Europe and North America . But the source of both profits threatened , for example in India . Many construction projects put on hold during the election this month .

Lafarge and Holcim are now located at a strategic moment , when " something must be sacrificed , " said analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald , Ian Osburn .

In a separate statement with some of the same sentence , both companies saw a " portfolio of both companies are so complementary , as well as the cultural closeness between the two companies , so we believe the potential of this merger makes sense and can bring significant benefits to consumers , employees , and shareholders . "

Cement manufacturers to build factories close to their major markets , due to the relatively low cost of manufacturing cement . In addition , when distributed , cement is usually very large volume .

As a result, Lafarge and Holcim are both a leading player in many countries in the world . Both combined cement production capacity may exceed 50 % in the Philippines , Morocco , and Canada , according to analyst estimates . In Serbia , Lafarge and Holcim's market share will exceed 80 % .

Global cement market is generally dominated four large companies : Lafarge , Holcim , Cemex of Mexico , and HeidelbergCement of Germany . In 2013 , Holcim is the largest cement producer in the world in terms of revenue , with total sales of $ 22 billion . Lafarge became the second largest producer with total sales of $ 20.82 billion , Heidelberg third with about $ 18 billion , and Cemex with approximately $ 15.2 billion .WSJ