Brazil's top cement manufacturer, Votorantim Cimentos SA, has recently announced plans to offer shares through an initial public offering valued at US$5.4 billion. This decision was reached despite Bovespa's stock indices posting the worst numbers in its first quarter since 2000.

The process involves lising of Votorantim shares as Brazilian and American depositary receipts on the New York Stock Exchange. This was confirmed through documents filed with US regulatory authorities. With this IPO, the total amount of pending IPOs in US bourses amount to US$12.7 billion. The other companies filing are Banco do Brasil SA's insurance unit for 12.2 billion reais or US$6.1 billion in shares, Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes SA with 1.35 billion reais and Alupar Investimento SA with 1.16 billion reais.

The cement manufacturer was established back in 1933 and is currently ranked as the eighth largest producer in the world. The funds would be utilized for expansion purposes beyond Brazil's borders and for other potential acquisitions.