July 25 (Reuters) - Mexico's Cemex, one of

the world's largest cement producers, reported a slight dip in

its second-quarter net profit on Thursday, mainly due to

currency exchange losses stemming from a weaker Mexican peso.

Cemex posted a $230 million net profit for the April-to-June

period, slightly lower than the year-ago period.

Like many Mexican firms operating abroad, Cemex saw its

foreign earnings diluted by a stronger Mexican peso last year,

but the currency was down nearly 7% compared to the U.S. dollar

in the second quarter.

Despite higher prices in local currency terms, Cemex revenue

for the quarter was flat at $4.5 billion, below an LSEG forecast

of nearly $4.7 billion.

The company said higher sales in Mexico, as well as in South

America and Central America, were offset by declines in its

U.S., European, Middle Eastern and African markets.

It added that adverse weather also contributed to lower

volumes and stagnating revenue.

In Mexico, Cemex's largest market, sales rose 6%

year-on-year, despite June's weather-related disruptions.

Sales in South America, Central America and the Caribbean

were up 3% compared to last year, the company said, while U.S.

revenues and volumes fell slightly, largely due to poor weather.

Sales fell 7% year-on-year in Europe, the Middle East and

Africa due to sluggish demand and geopolitical turmoil, Cemex

added.

The company noted that the sale of its Philippines

operations, announced in the first quarter, was expected to

close by the end of the year.

During a conference call later on Thursday, executives said

that despite the looming change of administration in Mexico, the

company expects "good tailwinds" in the key market. The company

also updated its guidance for energy costs per ton of cement

produced in 2024, adjusting it from a mid-single digit decrease

to a high-single digit decrease.

After the call, Cemex shares were up by about 2.3%,

reversing a fall of some 3% after the quarterly results were

released when morning trading began.