The 16th stone exhibition of Riyadh-Saudi Arabia, February 26/29, 2024

Why Saudi Arabia:

Riyadh and Arabic al-Riyah is the city and capital of Saudi Arabia, named because of its natural fertility and its location at the junction of Wadi Hanifah and Al Batha. This city is located in al-Riyah region, one of the 13 provinces of the country. Riyadh consists of a fortified and small desert village. Its metropolitan area is 600 square miles (1,550 square kilometers).

Saudi Arabia's free economy is 55.5%, making the country's economy the 118th freest in the 2022 index. Saudi Arabia ranks ninth among 14 countries in the Middle East and North Africa region, and its overall score is lower than the regional and global average. Saudi Arabia's economy was strengthening five years ago, then slowed down in 2020 and grew significantly in 2021.

Saudi Arabia is a very important country for the natural stone industry worldwide and continues to invest in construction with large projects and large-scale infrastructure investment. Saudi Arabia was the fifth importer of marble in the world (based on the percentage of global import purchases) after China, India, Italy and Taiwan and the fourth importer of marble between 2010 and 2014. In the past few years, the government of Saudi Arabia has made huge social investments in the construction of houses, hospitals, schools, universities, mosques, office buildings, etc., and the huge construction activities have created a great demand for natural stone as a result.