Displaying items by tag: data

Brazil: Cement sales reached 5.5Mt in November 2025, up by 4% compared to the same month in 2024, according to the National Cement Industry Union (SNIC). Between January and November 2025, total sales amounted to 62.2Mt, reflecting the same 4% year-on-year growth.

The Minha Casa, Minha Vida housing programme remains a major driver of demand, with project launches up by 8% and sales increasing by 16% over the period. Each 45m² housing unit consumes between 4-6t of cement, depending on the construction method. With a national goal of delivering more than 2 million units between 2023 and 2026, the programme is expected to significantly boost cement demand.

At COP30 in Belém, the Brazilian cement sector presented its new Net Zero 2050 Roadmap. Brazil’s cement industry currently emits 580kg of CO₂ per tonne of cement, which is below the global average of 610kg/t, and has reached 32% alternative fuel use, primarily biomass and waste.

“The cement industry is approaching the end of 2025 closely observing the dynamics between the heating up of the labour market and the constraints on credit,” said SNIC President Paulo Camillo Penna. “While the real estate market financed by savings suffers from high interest rates, social housing confirms its strategic role. The progress of the Minha Casa, Minha Vida programme and the continuous investments in infrastructure, combined with our renewed commitment to the climate agenda, will be decisive in sustaining demand next year.”

US: Total shipments of Portland and blended cement, including imports, reached an estimated 9.99Mt in July 2025, up by 7% from July 2024. Year-to-date shipments totalled 57.0Mt, down by 3% from the same period in 2024. Texas, Missouri, California, Florida and Alabama were the top cement-producing states. Texas, California, Florida, Ohio and North Carolina together accounted for 38% of total shipments.

Clinker production in July 2025 totalled 6.64Mt, nearly unchanged from July 2024. Cumulative clinker output for January to July 2025 fell by 7% year-on-year to 37.5Mt. Missouri, California, Texas, Florida and Alabama produced the most clinker.

Iran: Cement output fell by 10% year-on-year to 31.7Mt in the first half of 1403 (21 March – 22 September 2025), down from 35.1Mt, according to Ali Akbar Alvandian, secretary of the Cement Industry Association. He attributed the decline to weaker domestic demand and energy constraints.

Clinker output also dropped by 10% in the first quarter (21 March – 21 June 2025), recovered in July and August 2025, then declined by 4.5% in September 2025. Cement production in the sixth month (22 August - 21 September) fell to 5.7Mt from 6.4Mt a year earlier.

Exports rose by 7% to 6.9Mt of cement and clinker, while domestic demand fell by about 10%. A nationwide power cut in May 2025 reportedly halted production and temporarily increased prices.

Morocco: Cement deliveries reached 13.7Mt in the 11 months to the end of November 2025, an 11% increase compared to 12.4Mt in the same period in 2024, according to the Ministry of National Territorial Planning, Urban Planning, Housing and Urban Policy. The growth reflects the performance of Professional Association of Cement Manufacturers (APC) members: Asment Temara, Ciments de l'Atlas, Ciments du Maroc, LafargeHolcim Maroc and Novacim. APC members delivered 1.34Mt in November 2025, up by 5% from 1.27Mt in November 2024.

The Indonesian Cement Association (ASI) has warned that cuts to the Nusantara Capital City project had reduced cement sales so far in 2025. Yet also this week the ASEAN Federation of Cement Manufacturers (AFCM) launched its 2035 AFCM Decarbonisation Roadmap. Here is a round-up of recent news from the cement sector in Indonesia.

ASI data shows that local cement sales volumes fell by 2.5% year-on-year to 51.9Mt in the first 10 months of 2025 from 53.2Mt in the same period in 2024. Cement production decreased by 5.6% to 52.9Mt. Lower demand was reported in Kalimantan and Java. However, it rose in Sumatra and Nusa, in part, due to road construction. Sadly, Sumatra has been badly affected by floods this week. National cement exports grew by over 20% to 1.1Mt. The ASI is currently hopeful that a government-backed home renovation programme might stimulate demand.

Graph 1: Domestic cement sales and exports in Indonesia, 2019 - 2025. Source: Indonesian Cement Association (ASI). Note: Figure estimated for 2025, exports include cement and clinker.

The general picture can be seen above in Graph 1. The local cement sector has generally had a capacity utilisation issue since the mid-2010s. Domestic sales started to catch up but the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted the market. Meanwhile, exports of cement and clinker have been steadily rising since 2014. These are dominated by clinker exports, with the single largest destination being Bangladesh. Other major targets include Taiwan and Australia. The country’s relatively low consumption of cement per capita suggests that the utilisation rate will grow over time.

The local production market is dominated by state-owned Semen Indonesia (SIG) (with a 48.5% share), followed by Indocement (29.1%), Conch Cement Indonesia (7.1%) and Cemindo Gemilang (6.6%). SIG’s sales volumes in the first nine months of 2025 roughly follow the general trend reported by the ASI with local sales down by 1.8% year-on-year to 27.5Mt and exports up by 25.3% to 5.1Mt. The group’s sales revenue and earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) dropped by 3.8% to US$1.52bn and 23.8% to US$198m respectively. Indocement’s revenue fell by a similar rate. Both companies anticipate a modest recovery in 2026.

Something to note from SIG’s financial results and related discussions in 2025 (and earlier) has been its approach to marketing and selling its cement brands in a highly competitive environment. It says it changes its brand mix in different regional locations with varying combinations of market leaders with premium pricing and so-called ‘fighting brands’ with competitive pricing. Yet, eco-brands received a mention in addition to the other two groups in the third quarter report analysts’ discussions suggesting an appetite for potentially lower-clinker cements in a developing market such as Indonesia.

This leads to the second Indonesia-related news story of the week: the 2035 AFCM Decarbonisation Roadmap. The plan intends to reduce net CO₂ emissions from the cement sector in the region by 16% to 190Mt/yr from 228Mt/yr in 2020. 58% of this reduction will be achieved through the use of alternative fuels, 33% via the use of low-carbon cements and 9% through the use of renewable energy sources. Work towards carbon capture, utilisation and/or storage (CCUS) is starting with the aim of supporting capture pilots in the region and planning towards CO₂ transport and storage networks. Similarly, the roadmap urges producers to identify and prepare to use new secondary cementitious materials such as calcined clay and construction and demolition waste.

The race between capacity building and market share has been a familiar one in coverage of the cement market in Indonesia in recent decades. Provided the main companies can endure the competition, it looks set to continue, while demographic trends indicate the need for continued investment. Otherwise more market consolidation is to be expected when the utilisation rate dips too low. What is new though are the higher levels of blended cements and the changes this brings to the market. This can be seen above in the marketing strategy of SIG and the regional decarbonisation strategy. Similar trends are happening everywhere but the effects on a highly competitive market could be pronounced. Particularly if those government-backed schemes that the sector anticipates promote it.

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Colombia: The cement industry recorded a 6% year-on-year rise in national production to 1.25Mt in October 2025, driven by recovering construction activity and commercial demand. Domestic shipments grew by 10% to 1.18Mt. Shipments in the Bogotá area rose by 11%, while Nariño and Norte de Santander reported growth of 39% and 26%, respectively. Demand fell in Valle del Cauca and Sucre, by 2% and 0.6% respectively.

Kyrgyzstan: Cement production reached 3.6Mt between January and October 2025, up by 32% year-on-year or 0.89Mt, according to the National Statistical Committee. The entire increase was driven by higher output in the Chui region, which produced over half of the country’s total. Cement output in the Chui region doubled from 0.9Mt to 1.8Mt, accounting for all national growth over the period.

El Salvador: Cement demand rose by 22% year-on-year between January and August 2025 to 34.3 million 42.5kg bags, up from 28.1 million bags in the same period in 2024, according to data from the Central Reserve Bank (BCR). In August 2025, demand was 3.9 million bags, up from 3.5 million in August 2024. Director of the Planning Office of the Metropolitan Area of San Salvador (OPAMSS) Luis Rodríguez said “The main concrete companies are about to expand their distribution capacity.”

Holcim executive director for El Salvador and Nicaragua Manuel Arrieta said “We are seeing a 20% increase in our sales this year in volume. We have never produced as much as we did in the second half of the year and we foresee super-strong construction for the future, so we hope that next year we will be able to break a new record.”

Holcim operates two plants in Metapán and reported sales of more than 1.2Mt of cement in 2025. It has reportedly invested nearly US$80m over the past five years in expansion and sustainable technology. Cement imports also rose, with 614 million kg of hydraulic cements entering the country between January and October 2025. Guatemala was the top source at 193.2 million kg, followed by Vietnam and Japan. Total imports were valued at US$51.6m.

Rodríguez said that cement volumes, in addition to other construction materials, have increased by 60% through the port of Acajutla. Over five producers and importers now compete in El Salvador’s cement market.

US: Cement import capacity is continuing to rise despite a slowdown in demand and growing uncertainty over tariffs, according to a report by Argus Media. Cement supplier Ozinga initially expected  demand would bounce back after the November 2024 presidential election. CEO Marty Ozinga said “Then the Liberation Day thing happened. I think that really put a pause to a lot of projects, just enough to make it very disappointing for most of the year,” referring to the tariffs rolled out in April 2025.

Tariffs have increased costs for importers by US$5-10/t, said On Field Investment Research managing partner Yassine Touahri. Market analyst Ed Sullivan forecasts cement consumption falling by 5% in 2025 and dropping by a further 0.2% in 2026, hitting a low of 100Mt. He said longer-term growth is still possible, citing a potential market size of 140Mt by 2050 if past per capita consumption rates return.

With mortgage rates above 6% and affordability at record lows, residential construction is expected to remain weak. Sullivan said that industry utilisation is running at 76%, below the 80% that producers ‘would like to see’, and he expects imports to hit a bottom at 17Mt in 2026, despite new import capacity coming online.

"On the import side, capacity additions are not slowing down at all", even though demand for additional imports is much less certain than it was three to five years ago, LEK Consulting managing director Olivier Asset said.

Indonesia: Cement sales fell by 2.5% year-on-year to 51.9Mt between January and October 2025, amid a reduction in the national IKN capital city construction budget to US$889m. Cement production also saw a decline of 6%, reaching 52.9Mt. The Indonesian Cement Association (ASI) said weakening demand occurred in Kalimantan, where sales dropped by 828,356t to 3.88Mt, and Java, where sales fell by 556,468t to 27.1Mt.

Secretary general Ari Wirawan said “Domestic cement sales from January to October 2025 continue to show a negative trend, affecting nearly all regions with a 2.5% decrease compared to the same period in 2024.”

Sales in Sumatra and Nusa Tenggara rose by 2% and 3% respectively due to toll road and tourism infrastructure projects. Exports rose by over 20% to 1.11Mt, with shipments going to Bangladesh, Taiwan, Australia, Timor Leste and Sri Lanka. Production dropped by 6% to 52.9Mt, with utilisation reaching 53%.

ASI chair Lilik Unggul Raharjo said a proposed increase in the home renovation programme budget to US$2.6bn could lift annual cement consumption by 6.2Mt. He said “A 4Mt increase in demand is admittedly somewhat optimistic. Nevertheless, our fervent hope is that the increased budget for home renovations will indeed come to fruition.”