Consumer spending via POS transactions rises 13% to SAR 107.1 bln in August: SAMA

POS device

Consumer spending in Saudi Arabia increased 13% to SAR 107.12 billion in August 2022, from SAR 94.65 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:

POS transactions rose 21% year-on-year (YoY) to SAR 49.7 billion in August.

Data showed that a total of 644.9 million transactions were processed through 1.26 million POS devices in August.

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

The following table shows the development of POS transactions:

Cash withdrawals saw a decline of 1% YoY to SAR 46.17 billion in August.

These withdrawals were processed from 16,300 ATMs through 131.2 million transactions.

E-commerce sales through Mada cards increased 64% YoY to SAR 11.28 billion in August.

According to SAMA's monthly bulletin, these sales were made through 51.8 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.

Details and Historical Data of Consumer Spending