Saudi cement market figures for August 2026 reveal a striking paradox: while total sales remained almost unchanged compared to the previous year, the sector faced a sharp decline in exports, coinciding with a significant increase in clinker inventories. Conversely, domestic sales managed only limited growth, which helped to mitigate the impact of weak external demand.
According to Al Rajhi Financial data, cement sales in August reached approximately 4.58 million tons, a level that remains relatively stable year-on-year, but represents a decrease of 11 TP3T compared to July. This monthly decline was not due to weakness in the domestic market, as sales within Saudi Arabia increased by 0.51 TP3T month-on-month, but rather stemmed primarily from a drop in exports, particularly those of Saudi Cement.
The picture becomes clearer when comparing the performance of the local and foreign markets; local cement sales increased by 0.4% year-on-year during August, while exports decreased by 17.9% year-on-year, and declined by an even greater percentage of 43.2% month-on-month.
The performance of Saudi Cement was a major factor behind this decline in exports during August, which was reflected in the sector's total sales despite the resilience of domestic demand.
Local cement sales activity
At the corporate level, sales activity took different paths, with some companies recording clear growth last August, while others experienced significant declines.
Arabian Cement topped the list of companies covered by Al Rajhi Capital in terms of sales volume growth, with its sales increasing by approximately 151 TP3T year-on-year. Al Yamamah Cement achieved growth of nearly 121 TP3T, while Najran Cement recorded an increase of approximately 91 TP3T.
In contrast, sales of «Qassim Cement» declined by about 11% on an annual basis, recording the largest decrease among the companies covered by the report, while sales of «Southern Region Cement» decreased by about 8%.
Thus, the stability of the sector’s overall sales does not reflect a uniform performance among producers, but rather resulted from a significant difference in sales trends among companies, coinciding with a clear gap between the performance of the local market and exports.
Clinker exports decline
The decline in exports wasn't limited to cement; it extended to clinker as well. Clinker exports fell by 191 TP3T year-on-year in August, and by 21 TP3T compared to July. Looking at the year-to-date performance, the picture becomes clearer: clinker exports have declined by 261 TP3T year-on-year, while cement exports have seen only marginal growth of 0.61 TP3T.
This comes in conjunction with an increase in clinker stocks, which rose during August by 1% on a monthly basis to reach 45.9 million tons.
Eastern leads inventory growth
The increase in inventories was not distributed equally among the regions of Saudi Arabia, as the Eastern Province recorded the highest rate of inventory growth since the beginning of the year in terms of percentage, followed by the Western Province and then the Central Province.
Inventory levels have risen since the beginning of the year in all regions except the northern region, reflecting a difference in inventory developments between regions during the period.
Inventory levels become more important when compared to companies' coverage periods; Riyadh Cement has the lowest inventory level, enough for about 5 months, while the inventory of both Saudi Cement and Al-Yamamah Cement covers the needs of about 7 months.
The inventory coverage period at Qassim Cement rises to about 9 months, while at Najran Cement it reaches about 14 months, which is the highest level among the aforementioned companies.
Al-Yamamah's production is below the year's average.
On the production side, Al Yamamah Cement's clinker production in August remained almost unchanged compared to the previous year, registering approximately 572,000 tons. However, this level was significantly lower than the company's average monthly production since the beginning of the year, which reached approximately 735,000 tons, reflecting the difference between August's production and the average for previous months.
Thus, August's data paints a dual picture for the cement market: overall sales are stable, and domestic demand is resilient, but exports are declining and inventories are rising. With clinker stocks reaching 45.9 million tons and coverage levels varying among companies from 5 to 14 months, inventories and exports stand out as the two most significant divergences in the sector's performance during the period.
