Holcim has warned that if the price of oil continues to rise, it will be forced to increase the price of its cement in the El Salvador market in the short-term. "The price of cement has remained stable, although this (upward trend) is maintained, we will have to increase prices in the short term because all of our major inputs are rising," said Holcim corporate affairs manager Edwin Arévalo.

According to CASALCO, the Salvadoran Chamber of the Construction Industry, the average price of a Portland cement bag remained between US$7.74-7.83, an increase of 9% YoY. Part of this increase was due to an increase in tax payable, which was raised from 2- 5% earlier this year. The tax was criticised by the industry as encouraging imports and discouraging exports at a time when the industry faced a challenging business environment. "The tax was a burden to a sector of the economy that was depressed and was barely improving," said Mr Arévalo.
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