Emerging markets to drive aggregates demand

Global demand for construction aggregates is set to reach 53.3 billion tonnes by 2017, according to research company Freedonia. Growth is expected to average +5.8% per year between 2012 and 2017, with the most robust increases coming from emerging markets in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

The company said China would account for more than half of the new demand that will be seen over the five-year period. However, growth in India, the second largest market in Asia, will be faster, as the Chinese market matures and decelerates from the high growth levels seen in the 2000s.

These factors will contribute to annual average growth in aggregates demand of +6.2% in the region between 2012 and 2017. The volume of aggregates sold in Asia is expected to rise to 36.5 billion tonnes per year by 2017 – almost 70% of the global total.

North America will be more subdued, at an average of +4.2% between 2012 and 2017. This is expected to take demand to 3.75 billion tonnes of aggregates per year by 2017. The downturn between 2007 and 2012 means in volume terms, the market in 2017 will be about level with 2007.

Western Europe is expected to see the weakest growth between 2012 and 2017, at an annual average rate of +3.3%. The volume of aggregates sales in the region is expected to hit 3 billion tonnes by 2017, still 275 million tonnes less than in 2007.

Other regions of the world are forecast to account for some 9.95 billion tonnes of aggregates demand by 2017, following average annual growth of +5.7% between 2012 and 2017.