Prime Highlights:
Saudi Arabia’s education sector saw a 91.5% increase in spending, reaching SR220.76 million ($58.8 million) between January 12-18, 2025, driven by students returning to school after the midyear break.
Education was the only sector to register positive growth during the week, with a 60% rise in the number of transactions, totaling 153,000.
Total POS transactions across all sectors fell by 12.1%, dropping from SR13.4 billion to SR11.77 billion, as consumer spending in most sectors decreased.
Key Background:
Saudi Arabia’s education sector experienced a significant surge in spending, increasing by 91.5% to reach SR220.76 million ($58.8 million) during the week of January 12-18, 2025, driven by students returning to school after the midyear break. This growth was highlighted in the latest point-of-sale (POS) transactions report, which revealed that education was the only sector to register positive growth during the period. The number of transactions in the education sector also rose by 60%, totaling 153,000 transactions.
In contrast, overall POS transactions across the Kingdom declined by 12.1%, dropping from SR13.4 billion to SR11.77 billion, as consumer spending in other sectors softened. Notably, the clothing and footwear sector saw the sharpest decline, falling by 27.5% to SR663.16 million. Hotel expenditures dropped by 19.9%, while spending on recreation and culture fell by 19.7%. Similarly, spending on food and beverages decreased by 9.2%, while restaurant and café expenditures saw an 18% decline.
Other sectors, such as miscellaneous goods and services, also experienced declines, with spending down by 12.3%. In contrast, construction material spending saw a smaller dip of 2.1%, totaling SR340.1 million. Spending on transportation dropped by 2.6%, while public utilities saw a 6% fall.
Geographically, Riyadh led the way in POS transactions, accounting for 35.5% of the total, with spending reaching SR4.18 billion—a 9% decrease compared to the previous week. Other cities, including Jeddah, Dammam, Madinah, Hail, and Makkah, also experienced declines in spending, with Madinah seeing the largest drop of 19.6%. This data underscores the resilience of the education sector amidst broader spending challenges in the Kingdom, highlighting the importance of education-related expenditures in the nation’s economic landscape.
