Saudi point-of-sale spending slips to 15.03 billion riyals in week

Summary

• Saudi point-of-sale sales reached 15.03 billion riyals in the week ending November 7, 2026.
• That is down from 15.41 billion riyals a week earlier, with transaction volumes roughly flat.
• Weekly POS data is the fastest read on Saudi household demand and non-oil activity.

The latest

Consumer spending through point-of-sale terminals in Saudi Arabia totaled about 15.03 billion riyals in the week ending November 7, 2026, down from roughly 15.41 billion riyals the previous week, according to the Saudi Central Bank's weekly report. The number of transactions held near 264.9 million, almost unchanged from the prior week, meaning the decline came from smaller average ticket sizes rather than fewer purchases.

Details

• The headline figure: SAMA put weekly POS sales at about 15.03 billion riyals for the seven days ending November 7, 2026, against roughly 15.41 billion riyals the week before. That is a drop of around 380 million riyals, or close to 2.5%, in a single week.
• Transaction count: The central bank recorded about 264.9 million individual operations during the week, a level it described as nearly identical to the week before. Flat volumes alongside falling value point to lower spending per transaction rather than a pullback in purchases.
• The four-week trend: SAMA put the moving average of POS value over the last four weeks at about 13.71 billion riyals. Both of the last two weekly readings sit well above that average, placing the latest figure in the upper range of recent activity despite the week-on-week drop.
• What POS covers: Point-of-sale operations capture debit and credit card spending at shopping centers, retail outlets, pharmacies and similar merchants. The series excludes other payment channels, so it tracks card-based retail demand rather than total household consumption.
• Top spending sector: Food and beverages absorbed the largest share at 18.1% of the week's total, worth about 2.72 billion riyals, according to the central bank's breakdown. Restaurants and cafes ranked second with 12.6%, or roughly 1.89 billion riyals.
• City concentration: Riyadh led all cities with about 5.28 billion riyals, equal to 35.1% of the national total. Jeddah followed at roughly 1.94 billion riyals, or 12.9%, leaving the two largest cities with nearly half of all card spending that week.
• Seasonal pattern: SAMA data shows POS value rising in weeks that coincide with government salary payments on the 27th of each month, during school holidays, and ahead of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. Value falls in the weeks before payday and at the start of school terms.
• Multi-year comparison: Weekly POS value ranged between 11.4 and 15.3 billion riyals across 2025, up from 11.5 to 13.8 billion in 2024, 10.4 to 12.7 billion in 2023, and 9.4 to 11.6 billion in 2022, according to the central bank's historical series.
• Digital payments share: SAMA's latest data put electronic payments at 85% of all individual retail payment operations in the Kingdom for 2025, up from 79% in 2024, 70% in 2023, 62% in 2022 and 57% in 2021.
• Against the target: That 85% share exceeded the goal set by the Financial Sector Development Program, one of the Vision 2030 programs, which had targeted 70% electronic retail payments by 2025. The program's next benchmark was not specified in the central bank's disclosure.

Between the lines

The week ending November 7 falls after the October 27 government payday, a period SAMA's own seasonal pattern associates with stronger spending, which helps explain why both of the past two weeks sit above the 13.71 billion riyal four-week average. With transaction counts flat and value down, the shift looks like basket size, not consumer retreat.

What's next

The next weekly SAMA report will show whether spending holds above the four-week average as the cycle moves toward the November 27 salary date, typically the strongest stretch of the month for card transactions.

Source: Saudi Central Bank (SAMA)