PCA projects cement consumption growth through 2018

By |  May 26, 2017

The Portland Cement Association (PCA) expects U.S. cement consumption to grow 3.5 percent during the remainder of 2017 and 2018, based on data and policies likely to impact the industry in the years ahead.

Ed Sullivan, PCA senior vice president and chief economist, says that although details on specific U.S. policies are not fully available yet, PCA is forecasting growth using baseline estimates for factors such as infrastructure spending and tax reform.

“While fiscal stimulus will boost cement consumption, there are other economic indicators that will temper growth,” Sullivan says. “Infrastructure policies also take time to implement, so you could be looking at 11 to 22 months before new projects truly get underway.”

In addition, tax reform will have a key impact on cement consumption, according to PCA.

“When you hire a worker, you hire a taxpayer,” Sullivan adds. “The underlying fundamentals supporting economic growth are positive, though we’ll maintain a watch on how the U.S. government addresses possible inflation and immigration policy. This confidence in stable, sustained growth in cement consumption is likely to be unchallenged through 2018.”

The Portland Cement Association, founded in 1916, is a policy, research, education and market intelligence organization serving U.S. cement manufacturers.

This article is tagged with , , , , and posted in News
Allison Kral

About the Author:

Allison Kral is the former senior digital media manager for North Coast Media (NCM). She completed her undergraduate degree at Ohio University where she received a Bachelor of Science in magazine journalism from the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism. She works across a number of digital platforms, which include creating e-newsletters, writing articles and posting across social media sites. She also creates content for NCM's Portable Plants magazine, GPS World magazine and Geospatial Solutions. Her understanding of the ever-changing digital media world allows her to quickly grasp what a target audience desires and create content that is appealing and relevant for any client across any platform.

Comments are closed