Spending in Al-Lith: all activities

Card spending in Al-Lith (الليث) across 30 activities, from the point-of-sale statistics published by Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), monthly since January 2024 (Jumada al-Akhirah – Rajab 1445 AH). Official figures · match SAMA's published figures within rounding Coverage: cards only, ~57% of personal spending

Card spending in Al-Lith · week 13–19 September 2026 · 2–8 Rabi' al-Akhir 1448 AH

9.6 SAR million

+1.9% against the same week last year · rank 59 of 60 cities · 0.1% of Saudi Arabia's spending this week

What this means for your decisionLast 3 months: Al-Lith −0.2% against +6.0% for Saudi Arabia, so the market here is declining while Saudi Arabia grows. Compare your shop's growth with your city's growth, not with Saudi Arabia's: if it is slower than the city, the gap comes from the shop, not the market.

SAR million per week · oldest on the left, newest on the right (in amber) · axis: Gregorian month, then Hijri month (Umm al-Qura). Highest week 18.4, lowest 8.9.

Source: Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), weekly point-of-sale bulletins (value of transactions), latest published week 13–19 September 2026 · 2–8 Rabi' al-Akhir 1448 AH. Attributed to SAMA; the analysis is ours.

Last 12 months to August 2026 (Safar – Rabi' al-Awwal 1448 AH)

664SAR million, all spending · −0.2% in the last 3 months against last year · SAMA

31,895SAR per person per year: 12 months of spending ÷ 2022 Census population (General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT))

20,811population · 2022 Census (General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT))

Transactions in the same week

0.3million transactions · +4.7% against the same week last year

28.9SAR average transaction value (value ÷ number) · −2.7% against the same week last year

This week in the Spending Index newsletter, issue 2: what changed and why

Data coverage: these figures are card payments (point of sale) only: about 57% of personal spending in 2025; the rest is cash and does not appear here. Part of the growth is a shift from cash to cards, not new demand: in 2025, card payments in Saudi Arabia grew +5.8%, but including cash withdrawals the growth is +1.9%. Read the figures as a trend and a comparison between cities and activities, not as an absolute market size.

Interactive analysis for Al-Lith(Arabic)

Activities ranked

Each activity by its spending over the last 12 months to August 2026 (Safar – Rabi' al-Awwal 1448 AH), its growth over the last 3 months against the same months a year earlier, and its share of the city's spending. Source: SAMA (point of sale).

#	Activity	12 months, SAR million	3 months vs last year	Share of city
01	Groceries and food	154	+16.3%	23.2%
02	Fuel stations	114	−11.6%	17.1%
03	Restaurants and cafés	94	+1.0%	14.2%
04	Other	81	+25.1%	12.3%
05	Professional services	63	−43.1%	9.4%
06	Furniture and furnishings	43	+3.7%	6.5%
07	Transport	24	+11.3%	3.6%
08	Clothing and footwear	24	+124.0%	3.5%
09	Health	18	+11.6%	2.7%
10	Vehicle trade	17	+3.4%	2.5%
11	Building materials	13	−13.9%	2.0%
12	Pharmacies	10	−1.6%	1.5%
13	Hotels	8	+101.5%	1.2%
14	Bakeries and sweets	7	−12.2%	1.0%
15	Jewellery	5	+14.4%	0.8%
16	Vehicle maintenance	5	−4.6%	0.8%
17	Medical services	5	+58.7%	0.7%
18	Electronics	4	+3.4%	0.6%
19	Telecommunications	4	−45.4%	0.6%
20	Personal care	4	+22.5%	0.5%
21	Laundries	3	−25.5%	0.5%
22	Recreation and culture	3	+115.9%	0.4%
23	Public utilities	2	−3.3%	0.3%
24	Recreation	2	+142.4%	0.3%
25	Freight and courier	1	—	0.2%
26	Other transport	1	+180.0%	0.1%
27	Books and stationery	1	+39.3%	0.1%
28	Car rental	0	+166.7%	0.0%
29	Airlines	0	—	0.0%
30	Education	0	—	0.0%

Detailed pages

Restaurants and cafés in Al-Lith Groceries and food in Al-Lith Bakeries and sweets in Al-Lith Total spending in Al-Lith

Growth is measured against the same months of the previous year. Part of the growth in card payments is a shift from cash, not new demand. A business decision needs a field visit and your own figures.

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