Mexican ready-mix prices to rise 20%

Mexico's ready-mix concrete producers are set to raise prices by 20 per cent. The Mexican Association of Independent Concrete Producers (AMCI), representing 70 per cent of the production companies in Mexico, cited the rising cost of cement and aggregates, including sand and limestone as well as higher prices for diesel and electricity.

The price rise will come into effect on 1 January 2019.  "This increase... is due to the rise in 2018 of all our inputs," said Jorge Pérez, Cemex's Media Relations Manager.

"Cemex will increase its prices in Mexico according to the inflation of our inputs, which could vary depending on the geographic area," he said.

According to the National Statistics Agency (Inegi), construction costs rose by 10.23 per cent between January and November 2018, the biggest increase for the same period over the past decade. Cement prices increased between three and 9.9 per cent in the first nine months of the year, depending on the supplier.