Agreement to ease imports of Mexican cement reached

“There's been an incredible shortage on our imports of cement coming out of Mexico,” said Matt Morrow, executive officer of the Home Builders Association of Greater Springfield.

The proposed settlement, effective this spring, would reduce duties on Mexican cement imports from $26 per ton to $3 per ton, and imports would be allowed to increase to 3 million tons from 2005's level of about 2 million tons. Quotas and duties would be entirely eliminated after three years.

The settlement is good news for home builders nationwide, who have been battling cement shortages in more than 30 states.

The National Association of Home Builders has actively pursued a resolution to the situation, meeting with Commerce Department officials to urge the administration to overturn the tariffs.

NAHB provided the government with information on how cement shortages have delayed construction and harmed housing affordability by increasing the cost of projects, as well as providing data on the states most severely affected.

“With U.S. capacity running at full tilt, the nation still must import more than 20 percent of its cement supply in order to meet domestic needs,” said David Pressly, NAHB president and a home builder from Statesville, N.C., in an NAHB news release.

“Once finalized, this agreement will provide additional supplies of Mexican cement to the U.S. market. The pact is vital to meet consumer demand, which is expected to increase in the coming year as the rebuilding efforts from hurricanes Katrina and Wilma get into full swing,” he added.

The agreement is structured so that Florida and the Gulf region, where shortages are severe, will be able to significantly increase their shipments of Mexican cement. The negotiated framework also allows the president to direct an additional 200,000 metric tons of cement to areas hit by natural disasters.

According to NAHB, high anti-dumping tariffs have been in place since 1990, limiting supply from Mexico, which has excess capacity. Because of its proximity to the U.S., it takes four days to import cement from Mexico versus 40 days from Asia. [[In-content Ad]]