International Cement Review articles tagged under : Market Reports
Building on diversification
Kuwait has seen its economy heavily impacted by the crisis in oil prices, a lack of diversity and the COVID-19 pandemic. A lack of investment in infrastructure has further seen demand fall for the cement sector, which relies on several importers as well as domestic cement producers. Building ACICO’s new grinding unit, Ball Mill 4, which is scheduled for commissioning in the 1Q21 K...
Nigeria: search for new markets
While Nigerian cement volumes rose sharply in the 3Q20 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, there is limited room for strong volume and price growth. For the oligopolistic domestic cement industry, competitive pressures are a...
Great expectations?
While the start of 2020 saw optimism, COVID-19 quickly altered the view of even the most ardent optimist. As cement demand tumbled with construction sites going silent so did the sector’s initial confidence. However,...
Philippines: poised to rebound?
Having being one of southeast Asia’s strongest performers in recent years, the Philippines construction and cement industries have been hit by the impact of COVID-19 during the 1H20. However, the easing of restrictio...
Saudi: a belief in brighter days
Some of the shine has been taken off Saudi Arabia’s cement market as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and lower oil prices. However, the sector remains relatively healthy and the housing market is expected to contin...
India: beyond the headwinds
India has become the second-worst affected country by the COVID-19 health crisis. Consequently, construction activity has taken a hit and cement demand saw a dramatic collapse in the April-June 2020 quarter. As the ...
Côte d’Ivoire: year of uncertainty
With COVID-19 affecting economic activity throughout sub-Saharan Africa, the cement market in Côte d’Ivoire faces a particularly uncertain year as presidential elections and a political crisis add further factors of ...
Germany: leading the recovery
The German cement sector has fared better than most during the pandemic. Cement demand is forecast to remain stable this year, with a more cautious outlook for 2021. Meanwhile, producers are embracing the latest tech...
Turkey: looking to the future
Following two consecutive years of cement market contraction, Turkey began 2020 on a more hopeful note with first-quarter production, demand and exports ahead. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has provided a setback th...
Creating France’s post-COVID-19 landscape
While the coronavirus pandemic has affected France’s construction sector, going forward there are new opportunities for domestic cement producers as they support a shift in focus, creating a different landscape to ad...
Spain: drivers for development
In 2019 Spanish cement consumption registered its third consecutive year of recovery but the impact of COVID-19 has now brought fresh uncertainty. Despite the demand situation, Spanish cement association, Oficemen, d...
Bracing for an uncertain future
Despite being a general election year, Indian cement demand growth unexpectedly stagnated for most of 2019. Furthermore, the ongoing COVID-19 crisis further restricted demand in the opening quarters of 2020. Going fo...
Central America’s resilience
The markets of Honduras, Panama, Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Costa Rica will have to show fresh resilience in the resultant aftermath of COVID-19. Dependent on tourism and overseas remittances, cent...
Slowly back on track in Brazil?
Following a four-year downturn, Brazil’s cement sector was in recovery mode in 2019. However, after a slow start to the year due to inclement weather, the coronavirus pandemic resulted in a further drop in sales in s...
East Africa: keeping the lights on
With overcapacity and pricing pressures weighing in on the east African cement industry, cement producers are setting their sights on the return of strong demand by 2023. In the meantime, will they prepare by taking ...
Dry bulk outlook amid COVID-19 impact
As the coronavirus took hold of global economic activity, dry bulk trade crashed. As some parts of the world cautiously move out of lockdown, what is the outlook for the shipping of cement and other dry bulk trades? ...