Cement dispatches in Colombia down 7% in February

Colombia's cement market contracted 6.6 per cent YoY in February 2025 as dispatches fell to 0.965Mt from 1.032Mt in the year-ago period, reported DANE, the national statistics office. 

Bulk sales dropped by 12.4 per cent YoY while bagged cement sales were down 3.5 per cent YoY. This is also reflected in a 16.3 per cent reduction in the off-take by concrete producers and a 10.2 per cent drop in sales to construction companies and contractors. Dispatches to the wholesale/retail segment edged up by 0.1 per cent YoY. 

The Bogotá market expanded by 1.2 per cent YoY, but sales in Antioquia were down by eight per cent YoY in February 2025. Valle del Cauca and Cundinamarca reported market contractions of 4.4 and 7.8 per cent, respectively. In Atlántico sales were down 6.4 per cent YoY while in Santander they fell by 5.3 per cent YoY. However, the Bolívar market expanded by eight per cent. 

Domestic cement production declined by 3.9 per cent YoY to 1.05Mt in February 2025 from 1.092Mt.

January-February 2025
In the first two months of 2025 cement consumption decreased 4.9 per cent  to 1.835Mt when compared with the equivalent period of the previous year, when dispatches reached 1.929Mt.

Bulk sales in the 2M25 saw a 12.2 per cent drop while sales of bagged cement slipped by 1. 2p per cent YoY. Concrete companies lowered their purchases by 12.1 per cent YoY. Sales to construction companies and contractors were down 9.5 per cent YoY, but sales to the wholesale/retail segment picked up by 1.2 per cent when compared with the 2M24. 

The Bogotá market expanded three per cent in the 2M25 when compared with the year-ago period, while in Antioquia dispatches were down 4.7 per cent. In Valle del Cauca sales slipped by 2.3 per cent. Dispatches to Cundinamarca declined by 5.2 per cent while in Atlántico the market contracted by 6.6 per cent, a similar trend to Santander, which saw a YoY reduction of 6.3 per cent in the 2M25. Deliveries to Bolívar struck a more positive note, advancing by 7.3 per cent YoY. 

Output from Colombian cement plants saw a 4.9 per cent reduction to 1.996Mt in the 2M25 from 2.098Mt in the 2M24.