Colombian cement market grows by 14% in March

In March 2025, grey cement dispatches in Colombia increased by 13.7 per cent to 1.068Mt compared with the previous year when 0.94Mt was delivered, as reported by the country’s statistics office, DANE.

Bagged cement sales saw a significant advancement of 117.7 per cent year-on-year (YoY), while bulk sales also showed growth by 5.9 per cent. This uptrend was seen across various sectors with the retail/wholesale sector recording a 22 per cent YoY increase, ready-mix concrete companies experiencing a moderate uptick in sales of 2.3 per cent, and construction companies and contractors boosting their off-take by 6.2 per cent YoY.

Colombian cement plants ramped up production by 6.3 per cent YoY to reach 1.184Mt in March 2025 from 1.114Mt in the same period the previous year.

Looking at the first quarter of 2025, domestic deliveries in Colombia slightly increased by 1.5 per cent YoY to 2.911Mt from 2.869Mt. While bagged cement deliveries showed a positive growth of five per cent YoY, bulk dispatches saw a decline of 5.5 per cent YoY.

Sales to the retail/wholesale segment saw a notable improvement of 8.1 per cent, however, deliveries to ready-mix companies decreased by 6.3 per cent YoY, and sales to construction firms and contractors fell by 4.5 per cent YoY.

Regional sales data showed varying performances with the Bogotá market witnessing an 11.1 per cent YoY increase, Antioquia with a two per cent YoY growth, Valle del Cauca seeing a pick-up of 3.1 per cent, and Cundinamarca with a more modest 0.3 per cent growth. Conversely, dispatches contracted in Atlántico and Santander by five and 0.6 per cent, respectively, while the Bolívar market experienced a significant 13.4 per cent YoY expansion.

On the production side, output in Colombia slipped by one per cent to 3.18Mt in the first quarter of 2025 from 3.212Mt in the same period in 2024.

This data indicates a positive trend in the Colombian cement industry with growing dispatches and production levels. The various sectors within the industry are showing resilience and adaptability to market dynamics, contributing to the overall growth and stability of the sector.