CRH will increase its profile in South America through acquisitions in Chile and Brazil and by adding to its Argentine profile, the company's chief executive has said. At the group's annual meeting yesterday, Mr Don Godson, said that although Argentina had been hit "fairly hard" by the Brazilian recession and the "Tequila effect" - the slump in the Mexican economy in 1994 - CRH's interests had performed well.

CRH owns a tiling company, Cantera Cerro Negro, and a management company, CRH Sud americana, in Argentina.

Mr Godson added that there had been several smaller acquisitions in Europe which would be announced along with the interim results.

He said the US housing sector had been performing above expectations in the first quarter and, although demand was bound to recede in that sector, highway construction was strong and this would boost CRH's materials interests for the duration of the six-year programme.

In Britain, there was, "on balance", a more positive outlook, although public construction programmes were not popular at the moment.

But in the Republic, forecasts were for growth of more than 6 per cent this year.

The chairman of CRH, Mr Tony Barry, predicted another "year of progress", telling shareholders that Ibstock, the newly acquired British brick manufacturers, had a good start in the year "with recent interest rate reductions contributing to a modest improvement in sector sentiment".

He said the construction environment in Northern Ireland "remains difficult" but continuing strong growth in construction activity in the Republic resulted in good volume increases for cement and concrete products. During the meeting, Mr Godson, responding to a shareholder's question about ecological concerns surrounding a quarry in a protected area of Co. Limerick, said he was not happy with the company's performance in relation to environmental matters. "We try to improve it each year. We still have a long way to go," he said. Asked about CRH's interest in the quarry site at Glen Ding, Co. Wicklow, Mr Godson said normal planning procedures continued to be used for permission to quarry there following a denial of permission by An Bord Pleanala last September.

Regarding the controversial sale of the site, he said the State had chosen its method of sale.

"It was not for us to decide whether it was by auction or by private treaty," he said.

The private treaty sale is being examined by the Flood planning tribunal.