Tourist Spending Climbed by an Annual 5.41% by Q3 2018

According to Global Blue, tourist spending in Lebanon added 5.41% by Q3 2018, compared to Q3 2017. The rise can be linked to the 3.88% yearly increase in tourist arrivals to 1.51M by Sept. 2018.

The number of refund transactions rose by 2.12% y-t-d by September 2018. The highest increase of number of refund transactions was executed during the month of September with growth rate of 13.91% while the highest drop was performed during the month of June with a reduction of 5.17%.

Tourists from the Arab countries remained the largest spenders in Lebanon, with Saudis, Emiratis, Syrians and Kuwaitis in particular grasping shares of 12%, 11%, 9 and 7% of total spending, respectively.

On a year-to-date basis, tourist spending by Syrian, Kuwaiti and Qatari visitors rose by 74.56%, 5.89% and 62.55%, respectively. Meanwhile, spending by Saudi Arabian visitors and Emiratis slumped by 19.9% and 2.19%, weighing down on overall tourist spending for the period.

In Q3 2018, tourists expended 67% of their total spending on Fashion and clothing, followed by 18% on Watches and jewelry, noting that spending on Fashion and clothing grew by a marginal 1.02% by Sept. 2018. Similarly, spending on Watches and jewelry increased by 23.76% over the same period.

It is worthy to note that Beirut captured 81% of total tourist expenditures by Q3 2018, while the Metn and Baabda areas grasped 13% and 3%, respectively. In details, tourists’ spending in Beirut and the Metn area added 6.4% and 1.18%, respectively, while that in Baabda declined by 9.28%.

Year-to-date Spending Evolution by Town in Q3 2018

 

Tourist Spending Climbed by an Annual 5.41% by Q3 2018

 

Source: Gobal Blue

 

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