Al Jouf Cement posted a drop in earnings of about 40 per cent YoY to SAR15m (US$4m), missing Al-Rajhi Capital’s estimates of SAR 17.8m but exceeding consensus estimate of SAR13m, the research house said in a recent report.

Al-Rajhi Capita believes the cement producer’s weak performance was on account of the declining sales volumes given the stiff competition it faces from competitors in the northern region, coupled with the falling demand due to the slowdown in construction activities.