Consumer spending rises to SAR 110B in October: SAMA

POS device

Consumer spending in Saudi Arabia increased 4% to SAR 110 billion in October, from nearly SAR 105.3 billion during the same month last year, according to the Saudi Central Bank's (SAMA) monthly bulletin.

Consumer spending includes total cash withdrawals, point-of-sale (POS) transactions and e-commerce sales through "Mada", as the following table shows:

Source: Argaam Tools

POS transactions rose 7% year-on-year (YoY) to around SAR 51.1 billion in October.

Data showed that 810.4 million transactions were processed through 1.71 million POS devices during the same month.

POS transactions represent what is spent by consumers using their ATM and credit cards in shopping malls, retail stores, pharmacies, etc.

The table below indicates the development of POS transactions:

Point of Sales (Billion SAR)

Source: Argaam Tools

Cash withdrawals from ATMs declined by almost 3% YoY to roughly SAR 45.5 billion in October.

These withdrawals were processed from 16,000 ATMs through 129.2 million transactions. 

ATM Withdrawals (Billion SAR)

Source: Argaam Tools

E-commerce sales through Mada cards jumped by 23% YoY to SAR 13.4 billion in October. These sales were made through 78 million transactions.

E-commerce sales include Mada cards payment and purchase transactions through shopping websites and online applications, but do not include transactions made through Visa, MasterCard and other credit cards.

E-Commerce using Mada cards-Sales (Billion SAR)

Source: Argaam Tools