Okaz/Saudi Gazette RIYADH/RANIAH/RIJAL ALMA' — The cement crisis in several regions of the Kingdom has disrupted a number of construction projects and seen prices soar on the black market. Citizens interviewed by Okaz/Saudi Gazette said the price has skyrocketed on the black market to SR22 a bag, from just SR18 two days ago. They called on the authorities, such as the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, and big factories to ensure the market has adequate supply, and to crack down on distributors who are exploiting the lack of supervision by raising prices. A tour of cement stores by Okaz/Saudi Gazette showed that some traders are raising prices by 10 percent, instead of charging the official price of SR13 a bag. Mishary Al-Mutairi, a consumer, said the price hike over the past few days was between 10 and 15 percent. He said the crisis has shifted from the Western Region to the Central Region. He called on the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and big factories to solve the situation by ensuring supply and monitoring distributors. Raja Al-Sahli, another consumer, agreed that the authorities need to urgently monitor the market. He said the price of a bag of cement has increased by 10 percent. He added that this opens the door for further hikes which will severely affect citizens. He added that the lack of supervision will lead to the formation of a black market. This will result in delays of construction projects. In Raniah governorate, the price of a bag rose from SR18 to SR22 two days ago because of inadequate supplies on the market. Several citizens and contractors said the crisis has been artificially created to raise prices, because the cost of a bag was stable at SR18 a few days ago and there was enough cement on the market. In Rijal Alma', cement disappeared from shops in the past few days causing contractors to stop work. Muhammad Abdullah and Ali Ahmad, both citizens, said they were angry about the recurrence of the cement crisis. At some sales points, if bags of cement were available they were sold at SR21 a bag, with only 10 bags for each citizen. In a related development, an official source in Rijal Alma' governorate, said they are monitoring the buying and selling of cement at sales points all over the governorate. The source reassured citizens that the crisis would ease within the next few days. __
