GCC saw its consolidated net sales increased 18.1 per cent YoY to US$286.7m in the 2Q21 from US$242.8m in the 2Q20. EBITDA advanced 18.6 per cent YoY to US$97m in the 2Q21 from US$81.8m in the 2Q20. As a result, the EBITDA margin edged up from 33.7 per cent to 33.8 per cent over the same period. Net income increased 43.8 per cent to US$47.7m in the 2Q21 from US$33.2m in the year-ago period.

In Mexico cement and ready-mix volumes increased 17.1 and 41.4 per cent, respectively. In the USA cement volumes expanded 10.6 per cent and four per cent excluding oilwell cement. US  cement and ready-mix prices saw an uptick of 8.3 and six per cent, respectively.

Enrique Escalante, GCC's CEO, said, "GCC is off to an excellent first half of the year, we are very pleased with the results delivered - increasing top and bottom-line growth and EBITDA margin.

"We are revising upwards our full-year guidance, based on the strong first half performance. It reflects that positive momentum persists in our industry. Cement demand is stronger than pre-pandemic levels, and construction activity is expected to remain robust throughout the year. Every kiln at GCC is up and running."

Mr Escalante continued, "Our balance sheet is strong and ready for growth. We will allocate more resources to our core business - cement - and our distribution network to maintain our competitive advantage while we focus on our sustainability strategy and CO2 reduction targets."