US and Puerto Rico February Portland and blended cement shipments up 13%

Total shipments of Portland and blended cement, including imports, in the USA and Puerto Rico advanced 13 per cent YoY in February 2020 to 6.4Mt, reports the US Geological Survey (USGS). The top five state markets were Texas, California, Florida, Arizona and Georgia, which accounted for a total share of 49 per cent of the month’s shipments. The leading producing states for Portland and blended cement were Texas, California, Missouri, Florida, and Alabama.

Masonry cement shipments were up slightly to 163,000t in February when compared with February 2019 with Florida, Texas, California, North Carolina and Georgia as key markets, accounting for a 61 per cent of offtake.

Clinker output, excluding Puerto Rico, saw an 8.6 per cent increase YoY in February 2020 as cement plants produced 5Mt. Texas, California, Florida, Alabama and Missouri were the five largest clinker-producing states.

A total of 1.1Mt of cement and clinker imports supplemented domestic production, representing a 40 per cent YoY increase in February 2020.

January-February 2020
Portland and blended cement deliveries in the first two months of 2020 increased 9.9 per cent to 13.3Mt when compared with the 2M19. Meanwhile, masonry cement shipments for the two-month period remained stable at 353,000t.

Clinker production advanced 7.6 per cent YoY to 10.6Mt in the 2M20. Domestic output was supplemented by 2.1Mt of cement and clinker imports, up 24 per cent when compared with the equivalent period in 2019.