Cement sales in the Brazilian market saw 2.1 per cent YoY drop to 4.766Mt in January 2024 when compared with 4.868Mt in January 2023, according to SNIC, the country's cement association.
Exports were down 65.2 per cent YoY to 8000t from 23,000t in January 2023. The drop in domestic sales suggests that weak performance in 2023 is expected to persist in 2024.

High interest rates and debt have impacted household spending, alongside a drop in income and purchasing power. The construction market continues to contract, both in terms of building material sales and the number of real estate launches.

In the southeast, Brazil's largest market, sals slipped by one per cent YoY to 2.121Mt in January 2024 from 2.143Mt, while in the northeast sales declined by five per cent to 1.044Mt in January 2024 from 1.099Mt in the year-ago period. Market contraction was the largest in the south, where sales dropped by 6.2 per cent YoY to 0.808Mt from 0.861Mt in the same period. However, in the smaller markets, cement sales increased. In the central-western region of Brazil the market expanded by three per cent YoY to 0.55Mt in January 2024 from 0.534Mt while in the north sales were up 5.2 per cent YoY to 0.243Mt from 0.231M, said SNIC.

“The expectation for 2024 is positive, with expected growth of two per cent, still far from recovering the accumulated losses of 4.3 per cent in 2022 and 2023. The increase in wages and credit, due to the continued reduction in interest rates, the “Desenrola” programme, MCMV and the Legal Framework for Loan Guarantees, should boost construction activity and a better performance of the cement industry," said Paulo Camille Penna, SNIC president.