Cemex, one of world's biggest cement producer and competitor to Ireland's CRH, has reported a quarterly loss.

Cemex posted a second-quarter net loss of $306 million on Tuesday, disappointing investors as the world's No. 3 cement maker struggled with weak sales in the United States and Europe.

Cemex cut its forecast for 2010 earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization to $2.65 billion from $2.75 billion.

"Given the likely increase in fiscal austerity in response to the European debt crisis, we now see lower contribution from this region as well as slower growth in the United States," Fernando Gonzalez, executive vice president of planning and finance, told analysts during a conference call.

Seven analysts polled by Reuters had forecast a profit of $84 million for the quarter. Cemex reported a profit of $186.5 million in the April to June period last year.

The company's stock was down 2.4 percent in Mexico City following the earnings report and its New York-traded shares were down 2.7 percent.

"Cemex has been unable to turn around its finances; they continue to be weak," said Gerardo Sienra, a stock trader at Actinver brokerage in Mexico City.

Cemex said second-quarter revenue fell 3 percent from a year earlier to $3.8 billion. EBITDA fell 13 percent to $664 million. Cemex reported a drop of 8 percent in net sales to $684 million in the United States, compared with the same period in 2009. But U.S. volumes of gray cement and ready mix rose 8 percent and 3 percent respectively, a crucial sign that demand may be slowly returning in the company's top market. The U.S. housing market showed signs of recovery earlier this year but has stumbled since a special tax credit for homebuyers expired at the end of April. Sales of new U.S. homes surged in June, but other data has left in place a picture of a weak housing market in the United States, Cemex's biggest market. (C ) Reuters