Arabian Cement's CEO sees stable sales volume in Q3

Badr Johar, CEO of Arabian Cement

Arabian Cement Co.’s CEO, Badr Johar, expects stable sales in the third quarter of 2023 compared to Q2 2023, despite intense competition. 

In a phone interview with Argaam, Johar attributed the decline in Q2 2023 profits mainly to seasonality, which affected the sales value and volume during the three-month period. Meanwhile, the products’ average selling prices increased by 6.7 year-on-year (YoY). 

Johar also attributed the decrease in sold quantities to lower demand for cement during the period until June 2023, which resulted from a slowdown in the construction sector especially the residential construction. This was due to several factors, the most important of which was higher borrowing costs. 

The cement producer’s export sales shrank to 181,000 tons during the period, 75% down YoY as prices were unattractive on increased volumes. Meanwhile, the company’s exports were delayed until March 2023 for contractual reasons, according to the CEO. 

He stated that Arabian Cement’s local market share hit 6.4%, indicating that the clinker stock stood at 2.5 million tons, or about 60% of the company’s annual production. 

Arabian Cement reported a net profit of SAR 77.2 million in H1 2023, a drop of 11% from SAR 86.9 million a year earlier. Meanwhile, Q2 earnings reached SAR 28 million, Argaam earlier reported.