RIYADH: According to official data, Saudi Arabia’s point-of-sale transactions fell to SR11.6 billion ($3.09 billion) between August 18 and 24, a 14.1 per cent decline from the previous week. The most recent data from the Saudi Central Bank, or SAMA, indicates that expenditure on apparel and footwear was negatively affected, with the most significant decline at 35.7 percent and SR599.4 million in total transactions.
Spending in the education sector has been declining for the first time this week after rising for the previous four weeks, beginning on August 18 and ending on August 18.
The second-biggest decrease in spending, amounting to SR840.7 million, occurred in the education sector between August 18 and 24. The decline was 16.9 percent. Third-place hotel spending changed negatively by 15.9%, totalling SR224.6 million.
The top three largest shares of this week’s POS were: food and beverages (SR1.54 billion), down 11.3 percent from last week; miscellaneous goods and services (SR1.25 billion), down 14.9 percent from last week; and restaurants and cafes (SR1.59 billion), down 14.8 percent from last week.
Of this week’s total value, SR4.38 billion, or 37.7%, went towards spending in the top three largest categories. Spending on building materials and construction saw the least amount of decline, at 5.2 percent, bringing the total down to SR315 million.
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