Cement demand in Colombia slips 2% in July

Cement dispatches in Colombia fell 1.8 per cent YoY to 1.093Mt in July 2020 from 1.113Mt in July 2019, according to the country’s statistics office, DANE. Offtake by ready-mix concrete companies declined 17.5 per cent, but retail sales were up 6.5 per cent when compared with July 2019. Sales to building companies and contractors were down 7.8 per cent YoY.

The largest reduction in sales took place in Bogotá, where the market contracted by 23.9 per cent while in Cundinamarca consumption fell by 16.3 per cent. Bolívar and Atlántico reported a drop in sales of 13.2 and 12.5 per cent, respectively. Small markets such as Casanara, Sucre and Quindío and  saw sales increase by 46.3, 29 and 25.4 per cent, respectively.

Output from domestic cement plants edged up 1.2 per cent YoY to 1.131Mt in July from 1.118Mt in the year-ago period.

January-July 2020
In the January-July 2020 period the Colombian cement market contracted by 19.2 per cent YoY from 7.064Mt in the 7M19 to 5.705Mt in the 7M20, said DANE. Ready-mix concrete companies reduced their purchases by 32 per cent while sales to construction companies and contractors fell 21 per cent. The retail segment represented a 13.7 per cent reduction in offtake.

Domestic production dropped 17.5 per cent YoY to 6.024Mt from 7.304Mt in the 7M19.