US and Puerto Rican markets expand 6% in August

Total shipments of Portland and blended cements in the USA and Puerto Rico increased by 5.8 per cent in August 2018 when compared with August 2017, according to the latest figures by the US Geological Survey (USGS). In the first eight months of 2018 deliveries rose 4.2 per cent YoY to 65.5Mt.

The leading producing states were Texas, California, Missouri, Florida and Michigan, and accounted for a combined share of 37 per cent of total production.

Some 1.394Mt of imports supplemented domestic production in August 2018 (August 2017: 1.204Mt), resulting in a January-August 2018 total of 8.134Mt.

Some 38 per cent of shipments were delivered to Texas, California, Florida, Ohio and Illinois – the leading cement consuming states.

In addition, 234,000t of masonry cement were delivered in August 2018, up 4.2 per cent from the year-ago period. Demand for masonry cement was particularly strong in Florida, Texas, North Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia, which accounted for a combined share of around 61 per cent of August shipments.

Clinker production in the US remained stable at 7.1Mt in August 2018 while it was slightly higher at 50.1Mt for the first eight months of 2018 when compared with the year-ago period.