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The General Authority for Statistics bulletin on wholesale and retail trade detailed a 9.8 percent year-on-year increase in the e-commerce sales index for the second quarter of 2026. Retail trade excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles led the expansion with its e-sales index climbing 13.4 percent while wholesale trade excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles advanced 6.5 percent. Sales and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles posted a more modest 2.4 percent gain according to the authority’s figures. These movements reflect broader activity across the sector during the April-to-June period.
Quarterly comparisons in the same GASTAT report showed more modest gains with the retail e-sales index rising 1.1 percent from the first quarter of 2026. Wholesale e-sales excluding motor vehicles increased 0.3 percent over that same interval and motor vehicle activity edged up 0.1 percent. The authority compiled these short-term indicators to help measure economic performance in the wholesale and retail sectors.
Operating revenues for the overall sector rose 3.2 percent year on year in the second quarter according to the General Authority for Statistics assessment. Retail revenues excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles climbed 5.2 percent while the wholesale equivalent excluding motor vehicles increased 0.8 percent. The general revenues index fell 0.6 percent on a quarterly basis from the first quarter of 2026 the bulletin showed.
Employee compensation across the wholesale and retail sector expanded 9 percent year on year with the retail component advancing 10.8 percent the authority’s data indicated. Quarterly shifts proved more varied as retail compensation rose 0.8 percent and motor vehicle activity increased 1.7 percent while wholesale compensation slipped 0.2 percent. These compensation trends accompanied the revenue and sales movements detailed in the GASTAT bulletin.
The Saudi Central Bank separately recorded actual e-commerce sales via Mada cards at 101.4 billion riyals for the second quarter of 2026. That total represented a 32.3 percent increase from 76.6 billion riyals in the same quarter of 2025 according to the central bank’s monthly statistical release. The SAMA figures capture transaction values through the national payment system and complement the index-based measurements published by the General Authority for Statistics.
Automobile sales posted a 0.6 percent year-on-year increase in the second quarter of 2026 the General Authority for Statistics reported. The index advanced 0.9 percent from the preceding quarter providing an additional gauge of activity within the motor vehicle segment. The authority issues these statistics quarterly to supply timely indicators for economic analysis and policy planning.
