Central America sees dramatic rise in Vietnamese cement imports

Central American cement imports have grown the most in recent years from Vietnam, given that in 2016 no significant purchases were reported, Vietnam raised its share to 30 per cent of the total cement imported between January and September 2020.

During the first nine months of 2020, Turkey accounted for 18 per cent of cement imports to the region, Mexico eight per cent, Barbados four per cent, South Korea two per cent, Peru one per cent, Colombia one per cent and the United States one per cent, reports Central America Data.

From January to September 2020 the main importer of hydraulic cements in Central America was Guatemala (US$57m), followed by Nicaragua (US$35m), El Salvador (US$26m), Honduras (US$16m), Panama (S$5m) and Costa Rica (US$3m).

For the first 9M20, three of the six countries recorded YoY increases in their purchases. In El Salvador, Nicaragua and Guatemala, imports increased by 26, 15 and nine per cent, respectively. In the case of Honduras, Panama and Costa Rica, the drops were nine, 55 and 64 per cent, respectively.