New Delhi, Oct. 19 -- Headwinds from West Asia continue to buffet India's corporate sector, with the country's largest cementmaker UltraTech Cement Ltd navigating unpredictable cost pressures due to rising fuel prices. Even as it expects higher cement prices and robust demand to support margins in future, UltraTech's experience bodes ill for smaller rivals, as the cement industry struggles to absorb prolonged input cost increases.

Prices of petcoke, a key fuel used in cement kilns to generate the high temperatures required for manufacturing, have surged alongside other fuel costs. Transport expenses have also risen as industrial diesel prices climb, adding to the uncertainty over the company's overall cost outlook.

"Predicting a roll of...