Cement consumption in Spain fell 2.9 per cent to 1.2Mt in June 2019, the first drop in monthly demand since November 2018. The drop has been attributed to a slow public works sector

Despite the positive evolution of housing, the non-reactivation of public works and the delay of the work already tendered is slowing the growth of cement consumption," said Oficemen President, Jesus Ortiz.

Cement exports declined by 32 per cent in June 2019 to 450,728t when compared with June 2018. Mr Ortiz expressed his concern about the falling trend in total demand. "If we lose almost 900,000 tons in export and only earn 750,000 in the domestic market, our industry does not get the accounts," he said.

In addition to a 1H19 drop of 22 per cent in exports, the trade balance for cement in Spain has been worsening, providing little solace to the country’s cement producers. Imports have increased by 92 per cent in the first half of this year, with 436,407t reported. "If we add this number of imports to the loss of production due to the fall in exports, we find a total of 360,000 tons of cement that our industry is no longer producing," Mr Ortiz added.