Positive results for Interceramic in 2018, but below expectations

Ahead of the appointment with Coverings 2019 (Orlando, 9 to 12 April), we asked some of the leading figures in the US ceramic industry to comment on the current state and future prospects of the US market.

Victor D. Almeida, Chairman & CEO of Interceramic

“ As a group, Interceramic posted positive results in 2018 despite failing to live up to expectations in both the Mexican and US markets, which both slowed for different reasons. While the Mexican market will continue to struggle throughout this year, we feel that the US market should offer good opportunities for growth in 2019 and even more so over the coming years. So we are investing to be able to exploit these opportunities. At the beginning of 2018 we opened a new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Guanajuato, Mexico, which will help us supply more porcelain to the US (which is currently switching to this product) and to central and southern Mexico. If the United States approves the further increase in import duties on Chinese tiles, this will open up new opportunities for the Mexican producers and enable them to reclaim first place in the rankings of exporters (in square feet) to the USA. „