Saudi five-month cement sales down 18.7%

Saudi cement sales fell by 18.7 per cent YoY in the first five months of this year to 22.6Mt, while clinker output was down 11.3 per cent, according to the Saudi Cement Sector Monthly by Al Rajhi Capital.

Northern Cement and Najran Cement reported the steepest declines during the period, with reductions of 50 and 43 per cent, respectively.

Al Rajhi Capital said in the report that demand is unlikely to pick up in the remainder of the year given that construction activity is expected to remain weak. “Thus, we continue with our 2017 estimate of 14 per cent YoY decline in sales volumes (~47Mt),” the research house reiterated. (Source: TradeArabia News)