Colombian production drops, shipments ahead

Colombian production fell 1.4 per cent in July 2012 compared to the same month in 2011, while shipments for the period were ahead by 3.3 per cent.

The country’s statistical office, Dane, shows that shipments for July 2012 were 879,000t. By departments, Cundinamarca continues to lead the rankings with 52.7 percent of demand, followed by Santander, with 30.7 per cent, and Bolívar, with 20.6 per cent. In contrast, the main decrease occurred in Bogotá, down 14.4 per cent, which is attributed by some analysts to decisions made by the district administration which have affected the construction sector.

In the seven months to July, cement production totaled more than 6Mt, representing an increase of 3.6 per cent compared with the same period of 2011.