Card payments in Portuguese establishments are up 15% this summer compared to the same period last year, according to a report from Reduniq, the largest national card acceptance network and Unicre brand. This growth was mainly on the foreign tourism side, which recorded a 20% year-on-year increase in transactions between July and September, while domestic payments jumped up to 14%.
Invoicing saw a smaller increase. It amounted to 8%, mainly and again in the foreign activity, whose revenues totaled 10% compared to the summer of 2022 – nevertheless, the national contribution also saw an increase of 7%. The fact that transactions grew faster than billing indicates a decrease in the average purchase price: 35 euros in 2023, compared to 37.2 euros the year before.
“The growth in the number of transactions, compared to invoicing, is partly due to the gradual democratization of digital payments at the expense of physical money. We are not only talking about traditional payment cards here, but also about payments via smartphone or wearables.” explains Tiago Oom, commercial director of Unicre, noting that “merchants that do not accept electronic payment methods ultimately have an impact on sales results, as consumers carry less and less cash”.
The sectors hospitality (14%), food retail (9%) and hotels and tourism activities (5%) grew the most in terms of turnover and represented about 57% of the total. The table of those who spent the most in the country is led by the French, with a share of 18% of total foreign sales, followed by the United Kingdom and Ireland (13%) and the United States and Spain (9 %). Striking are the Irish tourists who, in addition to a turnover growth of 33%, also recorded the highest average purchase value in the top 5 of foreign countries: 124.7 euros.
According to Reduniq Insights, the highest annual sales growth was observed in the Autonomous Region of the Azores (14%), in the Alentejo (12%) and in the North (11%). By focusing only on foreign consumption, companies in island regions achieved the best results: while in the Azores the jump was 22%, in Madeira it was 18%. Internally, the Alentejo grew (12%). The Algarve and Área Metropolitana de Lisboa (both 6%), on the other hand, showed the least significant increases.
The peak in sales, which even represented 23% of the total amount registered between July 2nd and September 2nd, was reached in the first half of August, something that according to Tiago Oom is due to two factors: the first had to do with the host of World Youth Day, “which brought a greater flow of foreign transactions to different parts of the country”; and the second with the fact that “we are entering the traditional holiday season, the first half of August always being the favorite of the Portuguese”.
On the other hand, “foreigners are also increasingly looking for a diversity of national destinations, bringing a greater boost to the economy of each region, which is very relevant in these first two weeks,” the official added.
Mariana Coelho Dias is a journalist for Dinheiro Vivo
Source: DN
