Annabella quiroga
11/23/2020 12:32 PM
Clarín.com
Economy
Updated 11/23/2020 12:32 PM
In the year of the pandemic, construction
seeks to save clothing
.
Under the impulse of the rise of the blue dollar, which makes construction costs cheaper, the sale of inputs is already approaching the
historical record of 2017
.
The most prominent case is that of cement sales, which grew 4% in October against September.
"Cement shipments in our country grew in October for the second consecutive month. The year-on-year increase was
13.2%
, with a monthly increase of 4%," the IARAF reports.
In this way, "sales in October have already exceeded the level of August last year. Considering that construction is the mother of industries, the data is encouraging for the exit from the recession caused by the pandemic."
"It is expected that starting in the following months, with a greater release of activity due to fewer restrictions due to the pandemic,
this reactivation will be strengthened
," says the IARAF.
Pedro Brandi, president of Grupo Construya, who reports on the sales of the main companies in the sector, spoke in the same vein.
He highlighted that in October the dispatch of materials was
only 4.4% of the historical record of November 2017.
In addition, he pointed out that “the dispatch of cement on the stock market reached 742,000 tons in October, an absolute record for the industry.
However, as regards bulk cement, the recovery was much lower ”.
In October, the Construya Index increased 3.8% compared to September.
If only supplies shipments are measured, the increase was 15.8%.
Even so, the effect of the quarantine continues to be felt:
in 10 months the sector loses 9.8%.
For those who have bills on the mattress, the rise of the blue dollar, which has risen by $ 84 so far this year, adds attractiveness to this investment.
With a
dollar at $ 161
, construction becomes cheaper.
In the midst of uncertainty and restrictions to circulate and work, the growth came hand in hand with the spare parts sector.
It is in this sector where
bottlenecks
begin to appear
.
The drop in production in some cases and the lack of price in others, given the lack of certainty about how the blue dollar movie will continue, makes some inputs scarce.
In this context, the Ministry of Productive Development intimidated the manufacturing companies not to lack these products, under the threat of applying fines.
"The current situation of low stocks in shops and factories simultaneously with a high demand for materials and
lower productivity
of factories is what produces shortages in some cases," Brandi said.
When the photo is enlarged and you see the activity in its entirety, beyond the parts,
the numbers are still bad
.
The INDEC shows that the construction activity indicator fell 3.9% in September compared to the same month of 2019. On the other hand, it rebounded 3.9% over August.
This has a strong impact on employment:
the number of registered workers fell 23% between January and August of this year
.
According to the surveys carried out by the Construya Group, "the main concerns of the sector's value chain are related to
exchange rate uncertainty
, the increase in tax pressure and the lesser availability of financing."
AQ
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