RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s consumer spending rose 11.5 percent to SR15.80 billion ($4.21 billion) in the week ending Aug. 29, driven by a sharp increase in food and beverage purchases and continued back-to-school spending.

The number of point-of-sale transactions rose 7.6 percent to 255.38 million, according to figures released by the Saudi Central Bank, known as SAMA.

The rebound followed a softer week ending Aug. 22 and was led by stronger household spending, alongside gains in leisure, telecommunications and stationery.

Economist Talat Hafiz told Arab News that the latest figures were encouraging, particularly against the backdrop of the Kingdom’s relatively contained inflation.

Saudi Arabia’s annual inflation rate stood at around 1.8 percent in July, according to GASTAT.

“With POS transactions rising 7.6 percent and their total value increasing 11.5 percent, the implied increase in the average transaction value is around 3.6 percent. I would therefore be cautious about attributing the entire increase to inflation,” he said.

While higher prices in some categories, particularly food and other frequently purchased items, may have contributed, the figures also suggest consumers are spending more per transaction, potentially reflecting larger baskets, greater consumption or a shift toward higher-value goods and services, Hafiz said.

“The data appears to point more toward a combination of stronger consumer activity and higher spending per transaction, rather than inflation being the dominant explanation,” he added, noting that relatively contained inflation makes the distinction particularly important.

Sectoral spending

Food and beverage spending rose 22.8 percent week on week to SR2.59 billion, according to SAMA. Restaurants and cafes recorded SR1.78 billion in transactions, up 6.7 percent, while apparel, clothing and accessories spending increased 11.8 percent to SR1.41 billion.

Transportation spending rose 9.2 percent to SR1.13 billion, while gas station transactions increased 11.7 percent to SR1.07 billion.

Healthcare transactions climbed 12 percent to SR894.24 million, while professional and business services rose 9 percent to SR872.81 million.

Education-related spending increased a further 5 percent to SR1.1 billion after more than doubling the previous week at the start of the academic year.

Books and stationery remained among the strongest performers, with transaction value rising 28.7 percent week on week to SR199.74 million. The number of transactions in the category jumped 79.2 percent.

Telecommunications spending increased 26.7 percent to SR208.28 million, while recreation and culture rose 20.4 percent to SR432.83 million.

Hotel spending, however, fell 7.4 percent to SR282.81 million, while jewelry transactions declined 8.6 percent to SR275.62 million, making them the weakest-performing categories of the week.

Geographic breakdown

Riyadh accounted for the largest share of POS spending, with transactions reaching SR5.5 billion, up 7.2 percent from the previous week. The number of transactions also rose 7.2 percent to 83.54 million.

Jeddah recorded SR2.11 billion in transactions, up 17.6 percent, while the number of transactions increased 7.5 percent to 28.19 million.

Dammam followed with SR764.04 million, up 7.2 percent, while Makkah recorded SR626.14 million, up 17.2 percent, and Madinah SR618.07 million, up 19 percent.