Saudi Arabia: sales volumes fall 27%

Total cement sales in Saudi Arabia declined 27 per cent YoY and 39.6 per cent MoM in June, to 4.1Mt. Cement production in June was 3.66Mt, down 25 per cent YoY and 34.6 per cent MoM. June’s fall in sales volume can be attributed to Ramadan, which fell solely in June this year, unlike last year when it was split across June and July.

All cement producers reported a decline in sales during the month. Al Jouf, Saudi and City Cement experienced the lowest declines in sales, with figures falling five, seven and eight per cent YoY, respectively. Meanwhile Najran, Yanbu and Arabian Cement witnessed the highest decline in sales, with figures falling 53.5, 39 and 36 per cent YoY, respectively.

Saudi Arabia was one of the worst-performing regional construction markets in the first half of 2016, with the kingdom awarding just US$4.5bn worth of contracts, down from US$19.9bn last year.