RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s point-of-sale transactions remained above the $3 billion mark for the second week in a row due to a 32.5 percent increase in spending on education in the week ending Aug. 9.

The sector recorded SR251.79 million ($67.09 million) in transactions despite a 3.2 percent dip, reaching 161,000. It was the only one to see a positive change during the monitored period.

The total POS value stood at SR13.6 billion with a 12.3 percent weekly drop, underscoring the resilience of consumer activity across the Kingdom, according to data from the Saudi Central Bank, also known as SAMA. 

The subcategory of pharmacies and medical supplies saw the largest decrease, dropping by 24.7 percent to SR278.94 million. Spending on freight transport and courier services ranked next, falling 23.8 percent to SR48.68 million. 

Food and beverages, the sector with the biggest share of total POS value, recorded a 17.8 percent decrease to SR1.93 billion. In comparison, the restaurants and cafes sector saw a 7.9 percent decrease, totaling SR1.75 billion and claiming the second-largest share of this week’s POS.

Spending on transportation ranked third despite a 14.5 percent decline to SR1.04 billion.

The top three categories accounted for approximately 34.4 percent of the week’s total spending, amounting to SR4.71 billion.

The smallest decline was seen in the hotels sector, which decreased by 1 percent to SR349.97 million, followed by expenditure on medical services, which saw a 6.6 percent dip to SR474 million.

Spending on apparel, clothing, and accessories saw a 10.7 percent dip to SR998.90 million, and recreation and culture decreased by 13.4 percent to settle at SR345.58 million.

Geographically, Riyadh dominated POS transactions, with expenses in the capital reaching SR4.58 billion, a 9.8 percent decrease from the previous week. 

Jeddah followed closely with a 9.7 percent dip to SR1.91 billion, while Dammam ranked third, declining 9.2 percent to SR634.68 million.

Al-Qatif saw the smallest decrease, down 3 percent to SR92.35 million, followed by Abha with a 5.5 percent drop to SR285.04 million.

Hail recorded 3.99 million deals in transaction volume, down 12.6 percent from the previous week, while Tabuk reached 4.49 million transactions, falling 10.5 percent.