(MENAFN- Khaleej Times)Overall card spending during the holy month of Ramadan this year in the UAE has increased by 14 per cent as compared to last Ramadan according to a new report by Network International.
The report based on credit or debit card transactions by country during the period of Ramadan 2015 found that the major surge came from stronger domestic market spend with a 17 per cent growth in spending. International spend also witnessed overall growth of seven per cent. During Ramadan domestic spend - spend on UAE issued credit and debit cards - was 75 per cent of total spending. David Mountain CCO of Network International said: "The coinciding of the Islamic calendar with the traditionally quieter summer months in the UAE has given rise to interesting variations in spends with the market still registering a strong overall increase. Domestic spend of locals and expatriates based in the UAE becomes particularly important during these months." The report found that North Americans accounted for seven per cent of the total spend; while the GCC accounted for three per cent and their spend increases grew in line with domestic spend. The UK and Saudis had the largest growth among foreign spending. Spending growth in the hotel sector was a modest five per cent and almost half of this spend came from UAE residents taking advantage of Ramadan packages for domestic travel. The domestic tendency was even more pronounced in restaurants who saw domestic spend accounting for 83 per cent of the total spend. Restaurants enjoyed an increase of 27 per cent in spending as compared to last year. Malls found things to be more challenging with spending flat for jewellery and high-end watches but fashion witnessing a growth of 12 per cent in terms of absolute spend. In addition supermarkets saw an increase of 12 per cent indicating an increase in household consumption during Ramadan. Services performed well versus 2014 with professional services and government services up well over 25 per cent versus last year. Visa at the recent Prepaid Summit Middle East 2015 noted that innovation in the prepaid segment is a key driver to creating a cashless society in the Middle East and is acting as a catalyst for greater financial inclusion. Findings released by the global payments technology company indicate strong growth in the segment and usage patterns that demonstrate the important role of prepaid products in the migration to electronic payments. In 2014 Visa Prepaid products in the region indicated that 80 per cent of spend was for the purchase of goods and services 40 per cent of which was on e-commerce purchases and only 20 per cent of the total value was withdrawn in cash at ATM. In the UAE 20 per cent of the total spend on prepaid cards occurred cross-border 36 per cent was point-of-sales (POS) payments and 13 per cent online purchases. Prepaid payment volume in the rest of the GCC also painted a clear picture of growth including increased international usage where 62 per cent of transactions were cross-border and 82 per cent of spend occurred at POS 41 per cent of which were eCommerce purchases. -
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