The housing sector rebounded last year owing to investments in small and medium projects. At the same time, the non-housing sector has performed well in recent months, with larger projects launched by DIY networks, retail chains, office buildings and industrial projects, said Petry.
On the other hand, infrastructure was not a growth engine for the cement market in 2014, as constructions of this type dropped by over 20% last year, according to National Statistics Institute data.
Holcim Romania, the local subsidiary of Swiss Holcim, has not published 2014 financial data, yet. However, the latest data available reflects the trend of sales in the first nine months of last year, when the company posted a 4.3% increase in cement and clincher volumes against the year-earlier period.
Petry believes 2015 will be similar with last year in terms of the trend of the cement market and of Holcim Romania’s revenue.
We see the current year an intermediary stage for the major infrastructure projects set to be launched in 2016 and we do not believe we will see any spectacular developments, says Petry.
CIROM, the Romanian Association of Cement Producers, recently said the local cement market in 2014 advanced by 5-6%, reverting to the level of 2012 and is set to register similar growth this year as the local construction field is also forecast to rise by around 5%, according to the National Prognosis Commission.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)