US: Continental Building Products (CBP) has announced the launch of a secondary public offering of 7,000,000 shares of common stock to be offered by the company's largest stockholder, an affiliate of Lone Star Funds. The underwriters will have a 30-day option from the date of the offering to purchase up to an additional 1,050,000 shares of common stock from the selling stockholder. CBP will not receive any proceeds from the sale of the shares.

Peru/Chile: Chilean building materials importer and trader Novochile plans to export to Peru. The company recently opened a 16Mm²/yr capacity gypsum wallboard and timber boards plant in Chile.

Belarus: According to Volma's chairman of the board of directors, Yuri Goncharov, a contract with Germany's Grenzebach for the supply of modernisation equipment for the Belgips plant in Minsk has been concluded. The plant will be operational by the middle of 2015.

Under presidential decree No.34, which was signed on 16 January 2014, Volma was required to invest Euro43m to modernise the Belgips plant by 1 July 2018, including Euro24.7m by 30 June 2016. Within the funding, Volma had to transfer at least Euro2.5m to Belgips. "We will meet the investment project deadline, " Goncharov noted.

According to local media, Belgips' business is being threatened by multiple factors. The supply volumes to Russia haven't changed, but the product prices have fallen by 20 - 25%. There's also a negative effect on Belgips' position by the Polish companies that, according to Goncharov, offer their products on the Belarusian market at much cheaper prices than their domestic ones. There are also challenges regarding the procurement of raw materials.

In response, Volma plans to improve the quality of products through modernisation of the operating facilities. It will also decrease its prices. However, according to Goncharov, prices cannot get much lower. Volma also plans to improve its raw materials supply chain via imports. Goncharov expects to see Belgips in profit in 2015.

US: The Fifth Federal Reserve District member banks have elected CEO Tom Nelson to serve as a director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. His three-year term begins on 1 January 2015.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond is one of 12 district banks that work with the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors to strengthen the economy and communities served by the banks. The Richmond bank includes the District of Columbia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and most of West Virginia.

Nelson will be one of nine board directors of the Richmond institution. He has been chairman, president and CEO of National Gypsum since 1999. He also serves as a director of Belk Inc, Carolinas HealthCare System and Yum! Brands Inc.