In the mixer: construction sector of Spain churns out some impressive growth stats

With cement sales in the residential construction sector soaring, Spain’s property market recovery appears even stronger and more balanced.

Cement: Grey, heavy, slurried, hard, brittle and, well, boring. But vital, of course, since without it we’d have very unstable buildings, roads, bridges and pavements. So, forgive us for writing about cement just this once – because it’s relevant…

Consumption of cement in Spain rose every single month in 2017, which experts believe is a reflection of the exceptional growth of the nation’s residential construction industry.

As recovery in the Spanish property market has taken a firm hold nationwide, the stock of unsold new build property has been steadily reduced, prompting housebuilders to pick up the pace of construction. In 2017, construction activity reached heights not seen since 2008 – the year in which new development of houses practically ground to a halt.

The data from Oficemen, which analyses various portions of the construction industry, reveals a 28% increase in cement sales and consumption for residential homebuilding in 2017, building on a 25% increase recorded in 2016.

And data from February this year shows an 11.7% rise against January, which is an indication that construction activity in Spain’s residential housing market has continued strongly this year.

Overall, Spain got through 12.6 million tons of cement in 2017, which is an increase of 11.5% against the year prior. While growth has been driven by home building, it is worth remembering that 12.6 million tons of cement is, nonetheless, just one-quarter the amount consumed in 2007.