Peruvian domestic cement sales increase

Cement sales on the domestic Peruvian market increased to 756,471t in the first four months of 2007 from 570,541t for the same period of 2006, the Peruvian cement producers association Asocem said on May 16, 2007.

Cement output in Peru dropped by 0.41 per cent in the period to 815,466t Cement exports fell 76 pct in the period to 57,249t. The total cement sales, including domestic sales and exports, rose by 0.49 pct to 1,813,720t.

The higher demand of cement on the Peruvian market was attributed to the various housing construction projects supported by the Government as Mivivienda, Techo Propio and Mi Hogar, according to Angel Diaz, economic analyst of the consultancy Maximixe. Cement sales are also boosted by infrastructure projects as construction of office buildings and shopping malls in the capital Lima and the provinces. The strong domestic demand explains the drop in exports, as almost the total output was destined to the

domestic market, Diaz added.