A rebound in project activity in Saudi Arabia following a relative lull due to the spread of Coronavirus boosted steel prices by over 6 percent in January, a local newspaper has said. 

From around 3,558 Saudi riyals ($948.8) in December, the price of one tonne of steel grew to nearly 3,790 riyals ($1,010.6) in January, the Arabic language daily Almadina said. 

The paper said cement prices have also rebounded due to higher demand, but it gave no figures. 

The increase in steel prices was due to an upturn in project activity, higher domestic demand and an increase in steel exports, the paper said, quoting Omar Al-Salmi, a Saudi developer. 

“There also has been a steady increase in the construction of private houses following the introduction of new mortgage facilities,” he said. 

The paper quoted Fahd Al-Shammari, sales manager at a Jeddah-based building materials company, as saying demand for steel has steadily growth since the start of 2022 mainly because of a pick-up in project activity and large stock drawdown by developers and construction firms. 

(Writing by Nadim Kawach; Editing by Anoop Menon)

(anoop.menon@lseg.com) 

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