Mexican construction materials giant Cemex announced that it expects EBITDA for the quarter ending March 31, 2003 to reach about US$425 million, versus US$473 million for the first quarter of 2002. Operating income is expected to reach about US$275 for the first quarter of 2003 versus US$320 million a year before. For the first quarter, Cemex expects to achieve revenue of about US$1.55 billion compared to US$1.57 billion a year ago.

For the first quarter, Cemex Mexico's domestic gray cement and ready mix volumes are expected to grow about 9% and 19% respectively against 2002 figures. Cement sales volumes for Cemex's operations in the United States are expected to decline about 3% versus the same quarter in 2002. Cement demand was particularly affected by adverse weather conditions relative to last year.