Baltic index falls again, trend seen staying weak

The Baltic's capesize index .BACI fell 4.7 percent on Wednesday, with average capesize earnings falling to $37,445. Capesizes typically haul 150,000-tonne cargoes such as iron ore and coal.

"The capes have come off quite heavily today just on I think a lack of Chinese buying," Dawson said.

Brokers said freight derivatives contract selling had also weighed on the market.

"The development in the paper (freight derivatives) market supports our view that we will see rates come off recent highs as Chinese steel mills align their iron ore purchases to new production levels," Arctic Securities said.

"We also note that domestic iron ore has come down lately, potentially spurring domestic purchases rather than imports."

The Baltic's panamax index .BPNI fell 4.31 percent, with average daily earnings falling to $25,343, while the supramax index .BASI fell 0.1 percent.

Brokers said there were hopes that firmer U.S. grains export activity, helped by a Russian grain export ban, would provide support to the smaller ships later this year.

"Panamaxes have come off in the Atlantic in the past week as the grains demand has not been as strong as expected. It's been the same story with supramaxes too," said FIS's Dawson.

"A lot of ships have ballasted from the East into the Atlantic in expectation of a strong Q4, which has not materialised yet."

Analysts said freight rates would be dampened this year by the pace at which new ships are set to enter the market this year and next, despite indications of some vessel cancellations and delays.

"We expect rates to be depressed (in 2011). It is compounded by the supply issue without any doubt because a lot of ships are being built ... they obviously will have a tremendous impact," International Chamber of Shipping chairman Spyros M. Polemis told Reuters.

INDIA: Rise in cement price hits construction industry

Construction industry, which is struggling for the last three years due to economic recession, will face another problem with the rise of cement price during the last one week.

Noted brands increased the price by Rs 30 per each 50 kg bag. Till last week, 50 kg bag was sold between Rs 140 to Rs 160. Now, the price rose to Rs 180 to Rs 190 per bag.

The hike of cement price is attributed to the increase of raw material prices. Price of coal, fly ash and chemicals shot up. Consequently, the cement companies hiked the price of cement.

The price of iron used for construction industry also rose from Rs 32, 000 to Rs 33,000 per tonne. Sand and brick prices generally shoot up during the rainy season. Brick manufacturing industry has been badly affected due to incessant rains in the district for the last one month.

Trucks also do not venture into the Krishna river to shift sand. These factors led to the rise of brick and sand prices in recent days.

The realtors feel that all these factors would lead to increase the cost of production. A realtor said, “We will collect new price for the apartment flats with the increase of cement, iron, bricks and sand prices.”

Nearly 150 companies and individuals are engaged in construction activity in the city. With the real estate boom reaching the peak four years ago, several hundreds of apartments were built in and around the city. But, due to recession, more than 700 flats remained unsold for nearly two years.

With the change in the economic scenario in the country, the realtors are gradually trying to recover from the loss.

At this crucial juncture, the prices of building material increased. Middle class and upper middle class families who began construction of houses will suffer due to the hike of building material.

A cement trader said, “Generally cement prices shoot up in the summer due to power cut, but the cement manufacturers increased the prices due to an increase of raw material price.”

AFRICA: Cement makers brace themselves for turf wars

Cement companies are bracing themselves for increased competition as new firms boost supply, a move that is likely to eat into their market shares.

An outlook report by African Alliance shows that Athi River Mining (ARM), Bamburi Cement and East African Portland Cement will feel the pressure of intense competition which will have a bearing on returns to shareholders.

“Although the outlook for cement demand is positive with an estimated annual growth of 12 per cent, we believe the commissioning of new production capacities of an additional 1.7 million tonnes per year to the current production levels of 6.9 million tonnes per annum in the next two years will result in a significant industry production surplus,” said African Alliance in its industry report.

The analysis notes while all the three quoted cement producers Athi River Mining (ARM), Bamburi Cement and East African Portland (EAPC) will be under pressure, each player will face different levels of exposure denting their earnings.

Bamburi’s challenge lies in the sizeable market share it has lost to competition especially new entrants such as Mombasa Cement which is estimated to have snatched 10 per cent of its initial market share.

Currently, Bamburi is estimated to account for 48 per cent of the local cement market.

In the first half of this year, its turnover declined by 17 per cent pulling its operating profit down by 23 per cent compared to a similar period last year.

Its disposal of its stake in ARM eliminated its other source of income.

In addition, due to the higher power charges it experienced cost inflation.

However, with the commissioning of its Uganda plant, African Alliance predicts an improved performance for the remainder of the year.

ARM is expected to continue performing well due to improvement in internal efficiencies and growth in all its business lines with the cement segment accounting for more than half of the group turnover.

“Turnover increased by 19 per cent on a year-to-year basis with the cement volumes growing by 28 per cent and high margins from the other segments.”

However, ARM bottom line f aces fresh challenges of higher depreciation and interest costs on its capital expenditure which is expected to dilute the earnings.

ARM capex for the capacity expansion in its clinker plant in Kaloleni and Athi River cement production plant and the greenfield plant in Maweni Dar es Salaam is estimated at Sh12 billion.

“Given its current high gearing levels-which is the ratio of debt to shareholder’s equity- of 125 per cent the company is at high risk if its Tanzanian project should face prolonged delays or run ahead of budget,” says African Alliance.

VENEZUELA: Venezuela pagará US$ 650 millones a cementera suiza Holcim

Como parte de la estrategia del gobierno del presidente Hugo Chávez de nacionalizar los sectores estratégicos de la economía como la electricidad, las telecomunicaciones, la siderúrgica y la industria cementera, después de largas negociaciones, el Ejecutivo acordó pagar a la cementera suiza Holcim 650 millones de dólares (507 millones de euros) por el traspaso al Estado, en junio de 2008, de su filial en el país, informó el ayer la empresa helvética. 

"Holcim firmó un convenio con la República Bolivariana de Venezuela que acuerda los términos del pago de una compensación por la nacionalización de Holcim Venezuela C.A en junio de 2008", afirmó el grupo suizo en un comunicado divulgado por Reuters. "El monto total de la compensación acordada es de 650 millones de dólares.

 Una primera entrega de 260 millones ya fue recibida", afirmó el grupo, una de las mayores cementeras mundiales. El resto será pagado en cuatro cuotas anuales, añadió el grupo suizo, que tras este acuerdo, Holcim suspendió la demanda que había presentado ante el Tribunal Arbitral del Banco Mundial (Ciadi). Otros acuerdos Venezuela inició después del proceso de nacionalización en 2008 un largo proceso de negociación...

PARAGUAY: La importación salva el déficit local de cemento y de varilla

A agosto de 2010 ya ingresaron al país más de 3 millones de bolsas de cemento del Mercosur. Acepar no puede abastecer de varilla a causa de la huelga sindical. La importación ayuda al sector de la construcción.

A agosto del presente año ya ingresaron al país más de 3 millones de bolsas de cemento del Mercosur debido a la imposibilidad de la INC. Por ahora, Acepar no puede abastecer de varilla a causa de la huelga sindical. La importación está aportando para que el sector de la construcción siga trabajando. 

Si no fuera por la voluminosa importación de cemento y varilla, el sector de la construcción hubiera estado virtualmente paralizado, más aún ahora que las obras, tanto públicas como privadas, se reactivaron enteramente, en coincidencia con el crecimiento económico que vive el país.

El cemento importado cubre el 26% del mercado nacional, lo que se traduce en 3.237.683 bolsas (a agosto), mientras que la Industria Nacional del Cemento (INC) ya despachó 9.000.955 bolsas (a agosto), lo que representa el 74%.

En total, entre importado y producción nacional, ya se consumieron 12.238.638 bolsas, superior a todo lo fabricado aquí en el 2009, lo que demuestra que la demanda está en constante crecimiento.

La INC ya no tiene capacidad industrial para producir 450.000 bolsas adicionales por mes, para abastecer la necesidad insatisfecha del presente, lo que permite apreciar las posibilidades de negocio para cualquier inversionista que desee radicar capitales en el sector.

HAY REDUCCIÓN. Magdalena de Ruiz, accionista de Hierropar, reveló que la INC le entregaba "antes de este tiempo de escasez 6 cargas por día -3.000 bolsas de cemento-, pero cuando la cementera estatal entró a mantenimiento de refractarios, procedimiento que es normal, se redujo la entrega a 4, 3 y ahora 1 camión /día. El miércoles, jueves y viernes de la semana pasada no me entregaron nada", reveló. Nosotros importamos cemento y varillas para cumplir con los clientes", dijo.

Magdalena destacó que la INC ha aumentado su producción, pero debido a la mayor demanda, por el crecimiento de las obras, no puede dar abasto. "Los bancos están otorgando créditos para la vivienda y eso impulsó las construcciones privadas; la venta y los servicios en el sector de la construcción crecieron", aseguró.

Por otro lado, Carolina Sánchez, en nombre de Aceros Asunción, desmintió que Acepar sea accionista de la firma que representa. "Sí somos distribuidores autorizados de Acepar, y mi padre, el señor Ricardo Sánchez, es socio de la cementera Tasser que está en construcción. No es cierto lo que dicen los sindicalistas de Acepar que la citada firma tiene acciones en nuestra empresa, que importa acero de la compañía Bragado, de la Argentina", precisó. 

PRIVADOS, A POCO DE OCUPAR ESPACIOS

Dos nuevas fábricas privadas están en proceso de construcción, y en dos años más, entrarán a cubrir la necesidad insatisfecha del país en términos de abastecimiento de cemento. La cementera Tasser, ubicada en Villa Hayes, anunció que entrará en fase de operación en diciembre o el primer semestre del próximo año. Fabricará 10.000 bolsas por día y en poco tiempo proyecta incrementar la producción a 30.000 bolsas. Por otro lado, en Asociación, la empresa paraguaya Concret-Mix, en conjunto con Votorantim y Carmargo Correa, comenzaron a edificar otra cementera en la que proyectan invertir 100 millones de dólares. Informaron que la producción diaria será de 40.000 bolsas, pero recién entrará a operar en el 2012. La planta industrial está en Villa Hayes, por lo que esta ciudad pasará a ser un punto neurálgico de producción de cemento, por su ubicación estratégica por la cercanía con el Departamento Central.

VIETNAM: Cement consumption reduced

Corporation, Vietnam National Cement Industry (Vicem) said that cement consumption is lower than the same period last year, about 2.4% against the effects of weather, rain storms occur in Northern and Central. 

In August, except the Tam Diep Cement up 7.8%, most of Vicem units are not achieving the target consumption. From the day 11-8, Vicem units of the adjustment reduced the price of watershed 10,000 per ton to increase consumption. However, the market share of 1.1% Vicem reduction over the same period. However, if the top five overall, the total consumption of products Vicem reached 11.5 million tons, up 5% compared with 60% in 2009 and annual plan. In which Ha Tien 1 Cement, Hai Phong, Bim Son, Tam Diep's increase. On the market, cement consumption is estimated at 31.2 million tonnes, of which the joint venture contributed 9.7 million tons, other units of 10.1 million tons ... Thus the increase of Vicem lower than the increase of 1.8% of the market. 

PAKISTAN: Cement sector to take time to get out of troubled waters

KARACHI: The cement sales during the two months of the fiscal year 2010-11 have come under the hammer as the worst-ever floods in the country have dampened its demand and it might take a long time to recover, analysts said.

However, the damage to plants has been limited, despite being near the flooded areas.

Though sales pressure has picked up in August 2010 and price stress in the extreme North, by and large, cement prices look to remain stable in the medium-term, analysts said and added that the second half of FY 2010-11 may see the first signs of recovery.

The fiscal year 2010-11 has started off on a very divergent note as against FY10, with weak cement offtake. The yearly cement volumes are reported at 16 percent lower and the full impact of massive nationwide flooding is still expected to manifest in the next one to two months. 

Recovery prospects: Agriculture income growth and government infrastructure spending - two key historical drivers of domestic cement demand - will be absent in FY11. The former, given devastation to cropped area and livelihood and the latter given limited government fiscal space, which will likely be further squeezed by floods.

Recalling post FY 1993 floods, cement demand rose in the affected year but slumped for two full years before swinging up 13 percent in FY 1996, while in the post earthquake in October 2005 demand remained strong (plus 14 percent and plus 24 percent in FY 2006 and FY 2007, respectively.

Drilling down into July to August 2010 sales: Heavier-than-normal monsoon rains and late July 2010 floods have hit cement demand, more strongly manifested in August 2010 sales (domestic sales were down a sharp 25 percent on yearly basis). On the domestic front, weaker volumes are seasonal in the first quarter as typically the impact of monsoon rains and Ramadan slow down the construction activity. 

The latest number for the month of August indicated that the local cement sales plunged by 26 percent on yearly basis as compared to the same period last year.

According to the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association’s figures cement sector has showed dismal performance during August 2010. Cement dispatches are down mainly due to floods, which affected construction activities and also in Ramazan where activities usually slow down.

INDIA: Reports suggest that cement prices rises.

Reports suggest that cement prices in South India have risen by Rs25 to Rs40 per 50-kg bag.

Shares of cement majors like ACC, Ambuja Cement, UntraTech, India Cement and others surged amid reports that cement prices in South India have risen by Rs25 to Rs40 per 50-kg bag.

ACC ended at Rs947, up Rs59 or ~6.5% over the previous close. It had earlier been as high as Rs969.90 and as low as Rs900.60 after opening at Rs905.

Ambuja Cement closed up 7.5% at Rs136.05 after touching a high of Rs137.80 and a low of Rs126.20. It had opened at Rs126.55.

Jaiprakash Associates was up about 1.5% at Rs118.40. India Cement gained 9.3% to finish at Rs115.90 after hitting a high of Rs118.90.

UltraTech Cement closed up 8.2% at Rs1,000, a day's high. HeidelbergCement India was up 7.3% at Rs53.50 after being as high as Rs55.75.

Madras Cement shot up 14% to end at Rs119.30 after touching a peak of Rs125.55. Dalmia Cement was up 8.4% at Rs223 after hitting a peak of Rs234.20.

JK Lakshmi Cement rose 7.2% to finish at Rs65.40, while Shree Cements gained 4.2% to close at Rs2,038. 

Cement prices (gross retail) have risen by Rs15-20/bag in Hyderabad with effect from 7th September, according to reports. The revised prices in Hyderabad stand at Rs165-170/bag as versus Rs145-150/bag the previous week. 

Cement prices in other regions in the South (Tamil Nadu and Karnataka) have also risen by Rs5-7/bag with effect. The ruling price in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu stands at Rs195-200/bag as against Rs175-180/bag in the previous week 

In its reaction to the news, IIFL today said in a note to its clients that the development seems like the south based players are taking a conscious effort to

shore up the prices inspite of new supplies hitting the market. It called the move as "sort of a quasi cartelisation." 

"However, our earnings estimate still remains unchanged inspite of this price hike as the fall in price this year has been much sharper than expected (30% in last one year in Southern region),"

PAKISTAN: Cement dispatches plunge in August

KARACHI: Total cement dispatches dropped by 19 per cent in August 2010 when compared to the same period last year. Data released by Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (PCMA) has revealed that total dispatches in August stood at just 2.4 million tons.

Local dispatches have plunged by 25 per cent compared to last year, to about 1.51 million tons. “Recent floods have severely affected the transport of both raw materials and cement dispatches,” a representative of PCMA told The Express Tribune. “During August, much of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa was inundated and over the past month, the same situation has prevailed in much of Punjab and Sindh,” he added.

“Infrastructure in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa has been wiped out,” lamented PCMA spokesperson Brig Niazi, adding that “until these roads and bridges are restored, we expect local dispatches to continue to suffer.”

He added that although dispatches in September are expected to improve compared to August, “this month will also be a difficult one for local cement manufacturers”. Niazi pointed out that manufacturing will be stalled for about a week this month on account of Eid holidays. He also explained that accurate assessments of damages and losses to manufacturers in flood-affected areas will be revealed once reviews have been completed after the holidays. “Reconstruction and developments projects that were stalled by floods will also take some time to resume and hopefully demand will revive once the waters recede,” added Brig Niazi.

Rising hurdles to exports

Exports have also declined by six per cent to 0.89 million tons in the outgoing month as compared to August 2009. While this represented a slight improvement from the preceding month, experts contended that foreign sales are likely to suffer in coming months as the rising cost of production is making local cement uncompetitive as compared to regional competitors.

“Dispatches to Afghanistan were stalled for about a week because of flooding,” commented Niazi. He added that “the Indian government is dragging its feet on allowing our products and the official and unofficial barriers they have created are limiting exports through the eastern border,” he added.

Experts highlighted that Pakistani cement manufacturers have had an opportunity to export their surplus product to the Gulf and to African countries recently. However, since then, Saudi Arabia has removed export restrictions against its cement makers. Due to the easy availability of local crude oil, Iraq and Saudi Arabia are able to produce cement at much lower costs than Pakistan.

While local manufacturers insist that their product is of a much higher quality, the higher cost of production renders them uncompetitive compared to producers from Saudi Arabia and Iraq.

BANGLADESH:Cement cos' plea to increase enabling facilities

Cement companies have urged the government to develop the infrastructure and increase enabling facilities aiming to give the export of the item to India and other SAARC countries a new height.

"Bangladesh has a target to export cement worth $ 7 million in this fiscal (2010-11), but without developing the infrastructure and solving the problems of non tariff barriers with India, the fulfillment of the target remains a mirage," an official of MI Cement Factory Ltd, the manufacturer of Crown Cement told the FE Monday.

Crown Cement is the top cement exporting company to India from Bangladesh since 2003.

"Our government should solve the problems of non-tariff barriers like issuance of visa through Akhaura landport to facilitate our export to India," another cement company source told this correspondent.

Bangladesh exported cement worth 0.125 million metric tonnes till May of 2010.

According to MI Cement Ltd, the company exported 68,000 MT Crown Cement fetching $ 5.48 million between the period of July 2009 to June, 2010.

The company earned $ 2.267 million through exporting cement in 2008-09 fiscal.

"Consumption of cement, one of the key backward linkages of the construction and real estate sectors is expected to witness phenomenal growth in Bangladesh in the coming months as major infrastructure projects like Padma Bridge, Dhaka-Chittagong four-lane highway will begin shortly," an industry observer said. 

An official of Bangladesh Cement Manufacturing Association, said though cement consumption is growing, local manufacturers have to keep a large portion of their factories idle, as "local factories will be able to produce in full swing when those public construction works begin". 

Presently there are 30 operational cement companies that can produce around 20 million tonnes of cement a year against a demand for 8.5 million tonnes.

Of them, Heidelberg Cement, Lafarge Surma Cement Confidence Cement, Meghna Cement, Niloy Cement, Aramit Cement, Padma Cement and Modern Cement are listed on the stock exchanges.

The eight listed cement companies now have a total of 115,791,374 shares in the stock market.

During construction of Bangabandhu Bridge, the government offered duty free facilities to the constructing firm to import machinery and raw materials for cement. 

Some local companies are enhancing their production capacity, as domestic demand has consistently been on the rise for the past few years, except for 2007, along with increasing government initiatives, sector people said. 

The government plans to complete construction of the 6.15-kilometre long Padma Bridge, which will be the largest civil engineering project of Bangladesh, and Dhaka-Chittagong express highway in its tenure. 

The government's plans to set up several flyovers in Dhaka under the strategic transport plan and build 142 bridges across the country are expected to bring vibrancy to the cement sector. 

"As local companies have improved a great deal in the last few years, construction firms are now collecting cement from local sources for big public projects," said another cement company source.

The sector people said local cement was used in a few recent public construction projects, including the Bhairab Bridge, and the Sixth Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge (Mukterpur Bridge) in Munshiganj. 

But local cement makers were not in the same condition 10 years ago. 

During the construction of Bangabandhu Bridge on the Jamuna river, the constructing firm -- Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co Ltd -- had to set up a cement factory of its own to ensure cement supply to the mega project. 

The local cement sector has since come a long way, meeting domestic demand and exporting to neighbouring countries.

VENEZUELA: Solicitan audiencia al Gobernador para tratar caso Cemento Andino

Un numeroso grupo de trabajadores de la empresa Cemento Andino, estamos solicitando al gobernador del estado Trujillo, Dr. Hugo Cabezas, como también, al Consejo Legislativo Regional, nos concedan audiencias, a objeto de analizar y evaluar la situación que presenta la factoría, a raíz de las recientes informaciones que han salido a la luz pública, donde voceros comunitarios, de la Cámara Bolivariana de la Construcción y el pueblo en general, han denunciado una serie de irregularidades con la distribución de cemento.

       La solicitud la hicieron Nelson Vitorá, Osmairo Terán, Alexis Benítez, Danny Perdomo, Janeth Carrillo, Eleazar Graterol, Yorman Andrade, Marlene Materano y José Artigas, entre muchos otros trabajadores, quienes manifiestan que sienten dolor "con la situación de indolencia y abandono en que se encuentra nuestra principal fuente de empleo y sustento de más de 380 familias".

       Gobernador y Clet

       Es por eso que estamos pidiendo al Gobernador y al Consejo Legislativo que nos atiendan, a objeto de dar a conocer la problemática que atraviesa Cemento Andino, a pesar que estamos convencidos que ya el primer mandatario está debidamente enterado de lo que allí sucede, luego de haber presidido una asamblea con los trabajadores por espacio de 4 horas, donde recibió información pormenorizado de lo que acontece en la planta.

       Lamentablemente, todo lo que allí se expuso, no solo sigue igual, sino que la situación -advierten los declarantes- ha empeorado, a tal punto que nos preocupa que hasta hoy, la parada de mantenimiento no se ha podido llevar a cabo, por la sencilla razón de que no existe el suficiente stock de clinker en los silos de almacenaje.

       -¿Qué significa eso?

       Nada más y nada menos que, si la empresa hace la parada, no se despachará más cemento, situación que obedece a las constantes paradas del horno por falta de mantenimiento, lo cual se traduce que el producto brille por su ausencia en los establecimientos destinados a su venta, y si por casualidad se consigue, los precios son inalcanzables, incluso para nosotros que laboramos en la planta y que devengamos salario mínimo.

BOLIVIA: Soboce comprara clinker a Corea

Importará 50.000 toneladas de materia prima para producir más cemento.

Obligada por la sobredemanda de cemento, Soboce importará 50.000 toneladas de clinker (materia prima para elaborar el producto) de Chile y Corea por $us 6 millones (MM). Prevé además una tercera compra de Perú. Con ello, la empresa espera producir al 100% de su capacidad.

Desde hace más de dos semanas que la demanda de cemento ha excedido a la oferta en Santa Cruz, causando escasez y especulación. En esa región, “el crecimiento (de la demanda) es sostenido y ha estado en el orden del 15%; pero en lo va que va de este año ha tenido un especial énfasis, registrando tasas cercanas al 30%”, indicó a La Razón el gerente nacional de Planificación y Gestión Logística de Soboce, René Sánchez Martínez.

El gerente del Instituto Boliviano del Cemento y el Hormigón Armado (IBCH), Marcelo Alfaro, afirmó que “en los últimos cinco años las ventas de cemento en todo el país han crecido  prácticamente en 59%”. Atribuyó el hecho a la favorable coyuntura económica que se vive, no sólo en el país sino en toda América Latina. Mencionó además las bajas tasas de interés para créditos de vivienda.

Producción. Soboce tiene una capacidad instalada para producir   cada mes 125.000 toneladas de cemento a nivel nacional, que no está siendo utilizada a plenitud por falta de gas natural, afirmó Sánchez. En agosto, “hemos llegado a utilizar el 88% de nuestra capacidad”, acotó.

Explicó que el problema energético afecta la producción de clinker que es enviado a Santa Cruz desde la planta de Viacha (La Paz). La fábrica cruceña opera actualmente al 100% de su capacidad y vende toda su producción, 16.000 toneladas al mes, complementó el ejecutivo.

En ese sentido, informó, “estamos importando clinker de Chile y estamos haciendo también una importante compra de Corea; nuestros pedidos ya han sido colocados y en el transcurso de los próximos días vamos a empezar a recibir las primeras partidas desde Chile”.

Sánchez precisó que en total se importarán 50.000 toneladas de clinker: 20.000 del mercado chileno y las restantes 30.000 del coreano. Para ello se invertirán $us 6 millones, “que van a influir de manera  negativa en nuestra estructura de costos (...). No nos va a dejar ningún margen, sino una pérdida, pero la vamos a sumir”, subrayó. La medida, aseveró, no provocará un incremento en el precio del cemento.

Adicionalmente, Sánchez señaló que Soboce “está a punto de cerrar un trato para comprar casi de inmediato clinker de Perú”. El volumen a importar de ese país sería de 20.000 toneladas y con ello el costo total de la importación se incrementaría a $us 8,4 millones, señaló.

El viernes, el ministro de Obras Públicas, Wálter Delgadillo, anunció que el Gobierno importará insumos para la construcción como clinker para abastecer a la industria y combatir la sobredemanda.

Privados impulsan al sector

Según el presidente de la Cámara de Construcción de Bolivia, Iván Bustillos, el sector experimenta un boom a nivel nacional, principalmente en el eje troncal, resultado de una alta demanda en la edificación de emprendimientos privados como edificios, urbanizaciones y complejos de entretenimiento. El ejecutivo señaló que se prevé que el rubro crezca un 10% este año y agregó que si la inversión pública se hubiera ejecutado de acuerdo con lo planificado, el crecimiento proyectado sería del 14%.

Ventas en La Paz se disparan por compras desde el interior

La sobredemanda de cemento en el mercado cruceño repercutió también en La Paz, donde las ventas del producto se incrementaron en cerca del 40% debido a la llegada de compradores de Santa Cruz y Cochabamba.

“Ha habido un desequilibrio en el mercado más importante del país. Santa Cruz concentra casi el 35% del consumo a nivel nacional. Entonces, ha originado también algunas complicaciones en otros mercados como Cochabamba y, en la última semana, también en La Paz”, señaló el gerente nacional de Planificación y Gestión Logística de Soboce, René Sánchez.

A decir del ejecutivo, “se ha generado una ola especulativa, viene gente de Santa Cruz y de Cochabamba a comprar cemento a La Paz, donde el crecimiento de nuestras ventas ha sido de casi el 40% en el mes de agosto”.

Para el presidente de la Cámara Boliviana de Construcción, Iván Bustillos, la especulación registrada en Santa Cruz para la venta del cemento “genera un freno al proceso de construcción”. Explicó que si una persona presupuestó comprar 300 bolsas de cemento, al precio de mercado, para edificar su casa, debe realizar una pausa cuando el costo del producto se incrementa a media ejecución de la obra. El Gobierno anunció el viernes operativos de control para frenar la especulación.