Saudi Arabia: Najran Cement’s sales rose by 20% year-on-year to US$48.7m in the first half of 2019 from US$40.6m in the same period of 2018. Its net profit after Zakat and tax was US$0.92m, after a loss previously. It attributed its increased sales and profit to higher sales volumes, better pricing and reduced production costs.

Guatemala: The government has introduced a new distribution tax of US$0.2 per 42.5kg bag of cement. The new legislation also intends to regulate cement and clinker imports and appoint personnel to supervise storage sites, according to the El Periódico newspaper.

Peru: UNACEM’s sales rose by 1.5% year-on-year to US$296m in the first half of 2019 from US$292m in the same period in 2018. Its profit grew by 20.5% to US$74.3m from US$61.7m. Cement production increased by 8.5% to 2.62Mt from 2.42Mt. The cement producer also said that clinker exports from its Conchán pier fell by 22% to 0.45Mt from 0.58Mt.

Mexico: Cemex’s sales have fallen in all regions except for Europe. Its net sales fell by 4% year-on-year to US$6.72bn in the first half of 2019 from US$7bn in the same period in 2018. Its operating earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) dropped by 11% to US$1.21bn from US$1.36bn. Cement sales volumes decreased by 9% to 31.3Mt and ready-mixed concrete volumes by 3% to 24.9Mm³.

“The second quarter was impacted by the challenging global economic environment. Weaker-than-expected industrial activity and continued trade conflicts have resulted in lower investment in several of our markets. Mexico in particular has been affected by these factors, which led to lower-than-expected volumes. Adverse weather in the US also translated into muted activity during the quarter. In contrast, we are very pleased with the favourable performance of our Europe region,” said chief executive officer (CEO) Fernando A Gonzalez. He added that earnings were expected to pick up in the second half of the year due to improved government spending in Mexico, higher prices and sales volumes of cement in the US and Europe, stabilising energy prices and the group’s ‘Stronger Cemex plan’.