RIYADH: The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) revealed that credit card transaction amounts in foreign currencies had noticeably declined during the last months of 2019, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
According to SAMA, the amounts of transactions decreased by 25 percent in November to reach about SR1.27 billion ($338.5 million) compared to SR1.71 billion in the corresponding month of the previous year. These amounts also decreased in September and October by about 18.7 percent and 28.3 percent, respectively, compared to the same period last year.
This decline in the transactions’ amounts coincided with the launch of a number of seasons and events held in several regions and cities across the Kingdom.
Conversely, the amounts of sales points sales operations in the Kingdom grew significantly in recent months, increasing by 30 percent in November 2019 to reach SR25.8 billion, compared to about SR19.9 billion in November 2018.
The restaurants and cafes sector also saw growth of 54 percent in November 2019. The entertainment, culture, transportation, and hotel sectors saw annual growth of 30.5 percent, 25.2 percent, and 18.1 percent respectively.
