Colombia: Cemex Latam Holdings, the subsidiary of Mexican cement company Cemex in Central and South America and Caribbean region, has confirmed that is ‘solving’ the legal issues that prevent the opening of its new plant in Maceo, Antioquia, Colombia. The inauguration of the facility was postponed in May 2017 after authorities stated that the plant had not obtained all the permits to start operations. Jaime Muguiro, president of Cemex Latam, expressed that the company was still awaiting authorisation for the expansion of the plant's installed capacity, which is currently artificially limited to 0.25Mt/yr. The plant has a design capacity of 1.3Mt/yr and has so far cost Cemex US$420m.

India: Cement maker ACC Ltd has announced that its fourth-quarter profit for 2017 was more than double that of the same period of 2016. Its profit rose by 126% to US$32.1m in the quarter that ended on 31 December 2017, from US$14.1m in 2016. Its net sales for the quarter were 30% higher at US$531m.

Japan: Taiheiyo Cement has released its financial results for the nine months to 31 December 2017. They show a 10.3% rise in revenue for the nine month period to US$5.96bn from US$5.40bn in the first nine months of 2016. Its operating profit was up by 10.1% from US$403m to US$444m over the same period but its net profit fell by 43% to US$297m from US$520.9m. For the full year to 31 March 2018, Taiheiyo Cement advises that it anticipates a revenue of US$7.9bn, an operating profit of US$611m and a net profit of US$347m.

Honduras: Colombian cement manufacturer Cementos Argos has reported a positive performance in Honduras. The company, which entered the domestic market in 2013, sold over 1.1Mt of cement in the local market in 2017, a record figure that was 15% more than the 0.95Mt that it sold in 2016.