Oficemen has released Spain’s cement industry statistics for March 2013. Domestic cement consumption continued to decline, falling by 39.8% y/y from more than 1.29 million t to 778 568 t. Production levels also fell on a y/y basis, dropping by 29.4% to 1.03 million t. Figures for the first three months of 2013 were equally disheartening. In January – March, consumption came in at under 2.54 million t, down 29.3% y/y from the 3.58 million t consumed in the same period in 2012. Around 2.95 million t of grey cement was produced in January – March 2013, compared to 4.09 million t last year.
As Oficemen Director General Aniceto Zaragoza noted, in addition to stalling building works, there has been a drastic reduction in infrastructure investment in Spain, both of which have a knock on effect on the country’s cement sector.
Adapted from press release by Louise Fordham.