SUPPLIERS: Imports cover one third of the building materials market

The revival of the local construction market this year has resulted in an optimal development of the sector in the field of materials and products. The average turnover of specialized companies increased by 2.9% in the first eight months of 2015 over the same period last year. Valued at about 3 billion euro in 2014, the local construction materials market could grow by 3% -5% this year, according to estimates Association of Construction Material Producers in Romania (APMCR). Currently, the imports cover about a third of the sector, especially in the high value-added materials, such as finishing elements, HVAC equipment and all systems related to construction of intelligent buildings. According to APMCR, the construction products held at the end of 2014 a share of between 1% and 1.5% of Romanian export market. In the first seven months of 2015 were shipped abroad equipments totaling about 200 million euro. The timber was the star product, but resulted in a relatively small added value. According APMCR, scandals this spring have slowed the export of timber, which explains the value of exports in the first seven months. Otherwise, the were exported ceramic products with a value of about 80 million, and binders materials worthing 33 million euro. "I would like to emphasize that the export is a priority for our association, helping to support the promoting programs for exports implemented by the Ministry of Economy. The Romanian participation at the fair Project Lebanon with its own pavilion of Romanian producers, in 2015, for the second time it would be an example of an activity designed on medium term. We can exemplify the efforts we are making in 2016 for organizing four events at fairs in Tehran (the first Romanian flag in Iran after a long period), Doha (located in the middle of the Persian Gulf), Beirut (participation has become traditional) and Istanbul, where we try to discover and develop of the complementarity of the two economies", said Claudiu Georgescu, President of APMCR.