Saudi Wholesale and Retail Operating Revenue Index Rises 3.2 Percent as E-Commerce Gains 9.8 Percent
The General Index of operating revenues for wholesale and retail trade in Saudi Arabia rose 3.2 percent in the second quarter of 2026 compared with the same quarter of 2025, according to data released by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) on 30 August 2026. On a quarterly basis, the index fell 0.6 percent compared with the first quarter of 2026. That is a marked slowdown from the same survey one quarter earlier, when the general index rose 7.3 percent year on year and 0.5 percent from the previous quarter.
Operating Revenues by Segment
The breakdown showed uneven, and slower, growth across the sector. The Operating Revenues Index for retail trade, excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles, increased 5.2 percent year on year, while the equivalent index for wholesale trade, excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles, increased 0.8 percent, a gap of 4.4 percentage points on our calculation. Operating revenues from the sale and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles increased 2.7 percent compared with the second quarter of 2025. In the first quarter of 2026, the same year-on-year rates were 9.6 percent for retail, 5.5 percent for wholesale and 5.4 percent for motor vehicles, all considerably faster than their second-quarter readings.
On a quarterly basis, the picture reversed: the Operating Revenues Index for retail trade, excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles, decreased 0.9 percent compared with the first quarter of 2026, and the equivalent wholesale trade index decreased 0.8 percent, while operating revenues from the sale and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles increased 0.2 percent.
Separately, the Automobile Sales Index rose 0.6 percent year on year and 0.9 percent compared with the first quarter of 2026, down sharply from a 3.4 percent year-on-year rise and a 2.9 percent quarterly decline in the first quarter.
E-Commerce Sales Still Growing Faster Than the Sector Overall
The E-Commerce Sales Index rose 9.8 percent year on year in the second quarter, a considerably faster pace than the 3.2 percent rise in the sector’s overall operating revenues, a gap of 6.6 percentage points on our calculation, or roughly three times the headline rate. That e-commerce growth rate has itself slowed from 13.6 percent year on year in the first quarter.
By segment, the data showed e-commerce sales for retail trade, excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles, up 13.4 percent year on year against 5.2 percent growth in that segment’s own operating revenues, a gap of 8.2 percentage points on our calculation. Wholesale trade e-commerce, excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles, rose 6.5 percent against 0.8 percent revenue growth in that segment, a 5.7-point gap on our calculation. E-commerce sales from the sale and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles rose 2.4 percent, slightly behind that segment’s own 2.7 percent operating revenue growth.
On a quarterly basis, e-commerce sales for retail trade, excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles, rose 1.1 percent, wholesale trade, excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles, rose 0.3 percent, and the sale and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles rose 0.1 percent. The release did not state an overall quarterly e-commerce figure covering all segments together, and none is derived here.
Employees Compensation Still Rising Faster Than Revenue
The Employees Compensation Index for the sector rose 9.0 percent year on year, also outpacing the 3.2 percent rise in overall operating revenues, a gap of 5.8 percentage points on our calculation. Compensation growth has eased only modestly from a 10.1 percent year-on-year increase in the first quarter.
By segment, the index for retail trade, excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles, rose 10.8 percent year on year against 5.2 percent revenue growth in that segment, a 5.6-point gap on our calculation. Wholesale trade compensation, excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles, rose 6.6 percent against 0.8 percent revenue growth, a 5.8-point gap. Compensation in the sale and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles rose 5.7 percent against 2.7 percent revenue growth, a 3.0-point gap.
On a quarterly basis, the Employees Compensation Index for retail trade, excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles, rose 0.8 percent, the sale and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles rose 1.7 percent, while wholesale trade, excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles, decreased 0.2 percent. The release did not state an overall quarterly compensation figure covering all segments together, and none is derived here.
| Index | Year on year, Q2 2026 vs Q2 2025 | Quarter on quarter, Q2 vs Q1 2026 | Year on year, Q1 2026 vs Q1 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| General index, operating revenues (Saudi Arabia) | 3.2% | −0.6% | 7.3% |
| E-commerce sales index (overall) | 9.8% | not given as an overall figure | 13.6% |
| Employees compensation index (overall) | 9.0% | not given as an overall figure | 10.1% |
| Automobile sales index | 0.6% | 0.9% | 3.4% |
Why it matters: Wholesale and retail trade is one of the largest employers and revenue-generating sectors in Saudi Arabia’s non-oil economy, and this quarterly release is a direct short-term read on its health. The sector is still growing on a year-on-year basis, and faster than the 0.6 percent year-on-year growth a separate GASTAT flash estimate put on non-oil activity as a whole in the second quarter, but it lost momentum quarter on quarter after a much stronger first quarter. Real GDP overall contracted 4.8 percent year on year in the second quarter on that same flash estimate, driven by a drop in oil activity. E-commerce is still expanding well ahead of the sector overall, though that lead has narrowed from the first quarter, and employees compensation growing faster than revenue across every segment is a cost and productivity dynamic worth monitoring if it persists, though the data here do not include profit margins or costs beyond compensation, so no conclusion about profitability follows directly from it.
Outlook: This trade release is published quarterly; the next edition, covering the third quarter of 2026, will show whether the quarter-on-quarter decline in the general index was a one-off after a strong first quarter or the start of a slower run, and whether the gap between e-commerce growth and overall sector growth continues to narrow. The statistical calendar lists a fuller Q2 2026 GDP and National Accounts release for 8 September 2026, which will give a broader picture of non-oil activity than the flash estimate alone.
Sources: General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT), Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Wholesale and Retail Trade Statistics, Q2 of 2026 and Q1 of 2026; Real Gross Domestic Product, Second Quarter of 2026 (flash estimate); Statistical Calendar Releases
