11/05/2009
Northern Cement Production Company received the Kingdom's first permit to export cement from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Exportation was allowed to resume only after cement companies agreed to several new rules implemented by the Ministry, most importantly the rule regulating prices at 10 riyals per bag. Prices were regulated to protect consumers. Saudi Arabia introduced the ban on cement exports in June last year to ease the supply bottlenecks amid increasing demand across the region. Since the import restrictions have been imposed several Saudi firms have reported quarterly losses.
