Spain: cautious outlook maintained

Cement demand in Spain registered its first monthly growth since the recession started as it reached 875,000t in March, up 16 per cent YoY, according to Oficemen data.

However, the increase has been attributed to a weaker comparative period, with the Easter holiday falling in March last year resulting in few working days. Moreover, March 2013 was one of the wettest in history, further hampering building activity last year.  March 2014, on the other hand, has experienced much milder weather and there have been no notable festivals causing stoppages to construction, Oficemen highlighted.

Cement consumption during the first quarter of 2014 fell 2.2 per cent to 2.47Mta while in the past 12 months (April 2013-March 2014) the decline reached 12.9 per cent to 10.9Mta.

The cement association maintains its cautious stance for the year in hand, emphasising that demand will  7-8 per cent in 2014, marking the seventh consecutive year of contraction.

"The path to recovery is a long road ahead for the Spanish cement sector," said the CEO of Oficemen, Aniceto Zaragoza, in a statement.  He regards the pick-up in public investment as a necessity to start a sustained recovery.