In the latest report from the Saudi Central Bank, or SAMA, hotel spending in Saudi Arabia increased by 2.4 percent to around SR270.7 million ($72.1 million) in the week of October 6-12, marking the only sector to show any growth as point-of-sale POS transactions declined overall across the country.

SAMA’s statistics showed that in aggregate, POS transactions declined by 10.6% to SR12.2 billion after having risen by 2.6% the previous week. In one of the most significant sectors was the education sector, where a fall was highly pronounced. Expenditures stood at SR125.9 million, down by 36%. Another big sector whose spending saw massive declines is furniture and electronic devices, falling by 21.4% and 16% to the tune of SR274.6 million and SR199.8 million, respectively.

As the jewelry sector reported the lowest decline at 0.8%, the sector spent SR261.4 million. Transportation costs declined by 2.2% to SR751.9 million, and expenditure on recreation and culture reduced by 2.7% to SR293 million. Construction materials decreased by 9.3 percent, while public utilities declined 10.3 percent.

Based on a report by Al Rajhi Bank, while the food and beverage sector were still at the top, accounting for the lion’s share of the total in POS transactions amounting to SR1.9 billion, this however reflects a decline of 14.3%. At second place were restaurant/cafes with SR1.8 billion, and miscellaneous goods and services which accounted for SR1.5 billion and brought it to around 43% of the week’s total transaction value.

Geographically, Riyadh accounted for 34.9% of the total POS transactions, amounting to SR4.28 billion, despite a 9% decrease. Jeddah and Dammam followed, with declines of 9.1% to SR1.69 billion and 10% to SR627 million, respectively. Notably, Tabuk reported the steepest spending drop of 13.7% to SR238.4 million, with Hail and Abha also experiencing significant declines. In transaction volume, Hail recorded the highest decrease at 6.7%, underscoring the broader trend of reduced consumer spending.