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The UK construction market is in a funny situation right now. As the economy has started to grow in 2021, shortages of building materials have been reported following the relaxation of coronavirus-related restrictions. In April 2021, for example, the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) added cement, aggregates and certain plastics to its existing lists of products in short supply. These commodities joined a slew of other materials, including timber, steel, roof tiles, bricks and imported products such as screws, fixings, plumbing items, sanitaryware, shower enclosures, electrical products and appliances. The CLC advised all users to, “plan for increased demand and longer delays, keep open lines of communication with their suppliers and order early for future projects.”

Skip forward a month to May 2021 and these shortages are on more people’s minds with the announcement by the Office for National Statistics that UK monthly construction output grew by 5.8% month-on-month to around Euro16.5bn in March 2021 due to both new work and to repair and maintenance projects. Quarter-on-quarter output also rose by 2.6%, adding to the impression of a building sector emerging from the fog of lockdown. In the face of this good news Nigel Jackson, the chief executive of the UK mineral Products Association (MPA), was asked about reported shortages of cement. He told local press this week that “it would not be surprising if there were short-term issues of supply as the economy gathers momentum.” He added that the biggest issues had been observed in levels of bagged cement typically used in domestic projects.

The MPA followed this up with the results of a survey of building materials manufacturers that reported a slow but steady start to 2021 with mounting construction demand month-on-month. Sales volumes of aggregates and concrete were both up quarter-on-quarter but volumes of asphalt and mortar fell. Unfortunately that survey didn’t cover cement volumes but it did have more to say about concrete. In its view ready-mixed concrete sales had been subdued since 2017 due to the UK’s departure from the European Union (Brexit) and a general slowdown in residential building. The market recovery seen so far in 2021 was likely to be merely a return to growth from a subdued level of activity that pre-dates Covid-19.

At the time of writing the UK government faces a decision about whether to continue opening up the economy or exercise caution in the face of the as-yet unknown consequences of the Indian variant of coronavirus. This may delay talk of building materials shortages but it can’t avoid it forever. In the UK, cement shortages appear to be due to the self-build segment and will hopefully soon be resolved.

A shortage of cement in the UK may not mean much to people outside the country, with the exception of exporters. Yet the wider picture here is that the coronavirus pandemic has affected the production of building materials, changed end-user behaviour and distorted markets around the world. Other examples include the row over the price of cement in Nigeria, the boom in cement sales in Brazil in the second half of 2020 or reported shortages in Jamaica this week. A significant number of people, when forced to spend more time at home, appeared to save money and then decided to either move to a different house or make their current one better. Yet at the same time differing government restrictions and market fluctuations have seen building material output levels vary widely. Other reasons are at play both local and international. Brexit in the UK is one example of the former, as importers and exporters have been forced to grapple with new rules and costs. The temporary blockage of the Suez Canal in March 2021 is one example of the latter. No wonder supply chains are struggling. That last point goes wider than building materials though, for example, as anyone trying to buy semiconductors has discovered. One fear behind all of this though is whether these are temporary shortages or whether inflation is on the way for the global economy generally. In this is the case, then it signals the end of the low consumer inflation rate era since the financial crash in 2008 and may herald changes in behaviour from both producers and consumers.

China: China Resources Cement has appointed Jing Shiqing as its vice president.

Jing joined China Resources Cement in 2003 working in various production technology, human resources management and administration management. He became the Deputy General Manager of the Human Resources Department in 2018 and became a non-executive director of the company in the same year. Jing holds a bachelor's degree in engineering from the Changsha University of Science and Technology and a master's degree of business administration from the Nanjing University.

India: Cement demand will drop by an estimated 20% year-on-year in the three months up to 30 June 2021, the first quarter of the 2022 financial year in India. Credit rating agency Fitch Ratings has attributed the projected decrease to a significant drop in rural housing’s bagged cement uptake due to state governments’ coronavirus lockdowns, which prevent retailers from opening. The Hindu newspaper has reported that this type of construction previously generated one third of demand. Segments such as urban housing, commercial construction and infrastructure will be less affected, according to the forecast.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not yet implemented a national lockdown in response to the country’s second wave of coronavirus. New cases numbered 264,000 on 17 May 2021, down by 20% week-on-week from 330,000 on 10 May 2021.

Vietnam: SSI Research has predicted that Vietnamese cement exports will not grow in 2021. The reason for this is the expected stabilisation of China’s domestic cement supply, which is forecast to increase its share of the market. The Viet Nam News newspaper has reported that China accounts for 57% of Vietnamese cement and clinker exports. Other factors restricting export growth are safeguard duties in Bangladesh and the Philippines and the Vietnam government’s mandatory minimum domestic sales regulations, variously between 65% and 70% of total output.

Mexico: Cement production in Mexico grew by 24% year-on-year to 56Mt in 2020. This was its highest figure in the last five years, according to BNamericas. Data from INEGI, Mexico’s national institute of statistics, shows that production in January 2021 grew by 14.5% year-on-year to 4.2Mt. Yanina Navarro, the director of the National Cement Chamber (CANACEM), said that consumption changed in 2020 to favour bagged cement over bulk. She added that cement production was allowed to continue through coronavirus-related lockdowns in 2020 as it was classified as an ‘essential’ industry.

Spain: Cement consumption grew by 120% year-on-year to 1.24Mt of cement in April 2021 from 0.57Mt in April 2020. Oficemen, the Spanish cement association, says that the rise continues a pre-coronavirus positive trend, representing an increase of 3% from April 2019 levels. It added that the demand was the highest of any April since 2011. The association nonetheless urged caution in light of a 4% drop in four-month cement demand levels compared with the first four months of 2019, and a more moderate 25% increase year-on-year from 2020 levels.

In April 2021, Spanish producers exported 812,000t of cement, up by 230% from 248,000t in April 2020.

Taiwan: Taiwan Cement’s revenue rose by 11.3% year-on-year to US$788m in the first quarter of 2021. Its income increased by 11% to US$119m. It attributed this to profit growth in its cement businesses in Taiwan and Europe despite ‘weak’ sales prices in China.

Chairman Nelson Chang said, “To reduce carbon emissions, using alternative fuel and material for cement production, adopting renewable energy, and expanding energy storage usage are crucial and Taiwan Cement aims to play our role in helping society achieving the goal of a low carbon environment.” In 2020 the group processed over 9Mt of alternative fuels in its Greater China business.

Brazil: CSN Cimentos has filed for an initial public offering (IPO). Reuters previously reported that the Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN) subsidiary entered talks with Banco Bradesco and JPMorgan Chase regarding management of a future IPO in February 2021. CSN has not revealed the bank it has chosen.

India: Prism Johnson has added a proposed addition of 1Mt/yr to the cement grinding production capacity at its 5.6Mt/yr integrated plant at Satna in Madhya Pradesh. The project is expected to cost around US$34m with a scheduled commissioning date by September 2023. In January 2021 the cement producer said it was considering investing US$19m in a 0.9Mt/yr expansion to the Satna plant with a commissioning date by December 2021.

Ivory Coast: The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has set caps for the ex-factory and retail price of cement. Maximum prices have been designated for 32.5 and 42.5 grades of Ordinary Portland Cement in both urban and rural areas, according to the Agence de Presse Africaine. The ministry said that arrangements had been made with producers to keep the market supplied. It added that failure to comply with the designated prices would lead to penalties.