KIEV, March 26 - The Ukrainian association of large cement and concrete makers Ukrcement has reduced its 9.431 million-ton forecast for cement production in the country this year by more than 25% to 7 million tons.

"We predicted earlier that we would work through 2010 at last year's level, that is, at the level of 9.389 million tons of cement. However, the January-February production figures say that we have to orient ourselves to somewhere around 7 million tons of cement," Ukrcement's executive director, Petro Lopatiev, told Interfax.