Cement consumption in Spain continues to fall

Oficemen has released the latest cement consumption results for Spain, providing a bleak outlook for the industry as it continues to be hit by the economic crisis. In 1Q12, cement consumption fell 34.7% y/y. In June, cement consumption dropped 35.1% from approximately 1.9 million t in 2011 to 1.2 million t this year.

Oficemen has predicted that total cement consumption for the full year will plummet by 25% to around 15 million t, the lowest since 1964. This would represent a 73% drop from Spain’s highest cement consumption level of 56 million t in 2007. President of Oficemen, Juan Béjar, has attributed the decline to cuts to public works and continued uncertainty about recovery.

Béjar pointed out that Spain had been the fifth largest producer of cement before the crisis hit, but has fallen to 22^nd place over the last five years. In June, cement production decreased by 25% from almost 2 million t in 2011 to 1.5 million t in 2012.

Adapted from press release by Louise Fordham.

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/europe-cis/13072012/cement_spain_consumption_figures_2012_1167/