Brazil: Brazil consumed 62Mt in 2023, down by 1.7% year-on-year, according to data from the National Cement Industry Association (SNIC). This marks the second successive year of decline, after demand dropped by 2.8% to 63.1Mt in 2022. As a result, cement’s value on the National Construction Cost Index dropped by 6%, after having risen by 13% in 2022. The domestic cement industry recorded a capacity utilisation rate of 66% in 2023.
SNIC president Paulo Camillo Penna noted high household debt, high interest rates and poor income growth as impacting the industry’s sales. He said “The My House, My Life housing programme was not fully operational until the middle of the year. Up to September 2023, the construction industry experienced a 16% decline in the number of real-estate launches.” He continued “By 2026, we will experience a period of turnaround for the cement industry.”