The average price of iron in Saudi Arabia declined by 9.65 percent to 3,196.88 Saudi riyals per tonne in the first quarter of 2023 from SAR 3,538.50 per tonne in the year-earlier period, according to the country’s General Authority for Statistics.

Iron prices – Q1 2023 v/s Q1 2022 

Cabling prices slipped 3.65 percent year-on-year to SAR 48.02 per metre.

Cabling prices – Q1 2022 v/s Q1 2022

Average ready-mix concrete prices fell 0.9 percent year-on-year to 205.42 riyals per cubic metre.

Ready-mix concrete prices – Q1 2023 v/s Q1 2022

On the other hand, average cement price rose just over 1 percent to SAR 13.93 per 50 kg bag in the first quarter of 2023, compared to 13.79 per 50 kg bag for the same period last year.

Cement prices – Q1 2023 v/s Q1 2022

Average timber prices edged up 1.2 percent to SAR 3,694.30 per cubic metre in the three month period ended March 31, 2023, compared to SAR 3,651.75 per cubic metre a year earlier.

Timber prices – Q1 2023 v/s Q1 2022

In February, research firm Jadwa Investment said that Saudi Arabia’s construction sector will gain momentum in 2023 as a result of ‘giga projects’ launched within the ‘Vision 2030’ economic diversification scheme.

The construction sector rose by around 4.6 percent in 2022 and is projected to grow by nearly 4.7 percent in 2023, it added.