On January 3, Saudi Arabia’s total point-of-sale transactions hit SR17 billion (USD 4.5 billion), with a positive weekly increase in every industry.
The Saudi Central Bank’s most recent statistics show that while the number of transactions increased by 15.7% to 255.36 million, the total POS value increased by 30.6% week over week.
Education increased by 66.4% to SR235.51 million, while freight transport, postal, and courier services saw the biggest gain, rising 110.9% to SR74.22 million. Spending on personal care rose by 31.7%, whereas spending on books and stationery soared by 36%. The amount spent on jewels reached SR544.12 million, a 48% increase.
Improvements were seen in other categories as well. Pharmacy spending on medical services increased by 20.8% to SR556.27 million, while spending on medical supplies jumped by 42.1% to SR284.81 million. The biggest percentage of POS transactions occurred in the food and beverage industry, where expenditures increased by 41.4% to SR2.7 billion. Spending on apparel and clothing, meanwhile, increased by 30% to SR1.6 billion, placing the sector in third position, while restaurants and cafes had a 20.9% increase to SR1.9 billion.
The top three categories together accounted for SR6.22 billion, or around 36.53% of all POS spending. This national boom was reflected in Saudi Arabia’s main cities. The largest portion of POS expenditure, in Riyadh, increased by 21% to SR5.61 billion from SR4.63 billion the week before. There were 79.6 million transactions in the capital, an increase of 12.2%.
Transaction values rose 25.6% to SR2.24 billion in Jeddah and 26.1% to SR831.93 million in Dammam. SAMA (Saudi Central Bank) tracks POS data every week, which shows trends in consumer spending and the continuous expansion of digital payments in Saudi Arabia. The data also shows how POS technology is becoming more widespread both in the Kingdom and the wider Gulf region, helping larger digital inclusion programs by reaching smaller communities and service industries in addition to major retail centres.
By encouraging electronic transactions and supporting the Kingdom’s larger digital economy, the development of digital payment technology has remained in line with Saudi Arabia’s “Vision 2030” diversification agenda.