US: ABC Ready Mix plans to open a ready-mix concrete plant in Howell County, Missouri, by the end of September 2026. Local press has reported that the plant will occupy a 5.53 hectare site opposite a heavy goods vehicle park in Willow Springs. The California-based producer currently operates 41 trucks and employs 50 people, and plans to employ a further 10 – 11 people at the Howell County plant.

Germany: Switzerland-based cement producer Holcim has completed its €1.85bn acquisition of Xella, expanding its building solutions portfolio. Xella is present in 22 European markets and expects to generate net sales of €1bn in 2026. The transaction should result in synergies of €60m realised in its third year, according to Holcim.

Via the deal, Holcim now obtains brands for both the new-build and the energy-efficient repair and refurbishment market, including Ytong and Hebel prefabricated autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC) modular systems and Silka calcium silicate elements.

South Korea: The National Ready-Mix Concrete Transport Workers' Union (Jeonunryeon) has ended a strike in the Seoul Metropolitan Area after members approved a new agreement on transport fees for ready-mix concrete producers. The Seoul Economic Daily newspaper has reported that 4714 (66%) of Jeonunryeon members voted to approve the agreement.

Under the terms of the agreement, transport fees will rise by 5% to US$52/trip from 1 July 2026. Strikers reportedly rejected the same fee rise, by a 68% majority, on 10 June 2026. The revised deal has reduced the period of its effect from 12 to eight months, bringing forward the date for renegotiation to 28 February 2027.

France: Cemex France has won a contract to supply 310,000m³ of ready-mix concrete for the construction of station and service structures on the northern section of Grand Paris Express Line 15 Ouest in Paris. Deliveries over an anticipated four-to-five years comprise 110,000m³ of CXB Fondations Spéciales Fluides easy-flow concrete for diaphragm walls and 200,000m³ of CXB Génie Civil structural concrete for foundations, slabs, walls and columns. Cemex France plans to supply 150 – 800m³/day of concrete from its local Gennevilliers and Nanterre ready-mix concrete batching plants. The company has partnered with mobile concrete production unit supplier Béton Solutions Mobiles to support the execution of the project.