Middle East

In February 2022, Yachin increased the prices of its canned goods by an average of 24%. In the months following, the prices of canned goods continued to rise. While no major announcements were made regarding the increase in these products, the prices…

In November 2022, Unilever increased the prices of cereal for retailers. These increases went into effect over the succeeding three months. In May 2023, Osem announced a price rise for its products, including cereals, by an average of 4.7%. In May…

In July 2022, the Price Control Committee declared that bread should be removed from price controls. The move required the approval of the Ministry of Economics, which was not forthcoming due to the fear that this would cause price increases for…

Women’s empowerment in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in line with the goals of the Saudi Vision 2030, helps to support growth in womenswear. The government continues to support female empowerment and strive for equality between men and women, through…

Staple foods in 2023: The big picture

Sporting activities are a large part of the Saudi Vision 2030, and we are seeing this influence trends in sportswear and sports-inspired apparel and footwear, particularly so in menswear and increasingly so in childrenswear and womenswear. Notably,…

Menswear in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is inspired by both local, traditional garments, and global fashion trends. Traditional wear for men typically consists of long flowing gowns and thobes, with the latter being a long-sleeved, ankle-length,…

Jeans is a stable category in apparel, being an eternally-fashionable form of apparel which can be dressed up and dressed down accordingly. That said, jeans does face some competition from the rising athleisure trend, although jeans can also be…

Non-sheer hosiery continues to perform better than sheer hosiery in Saudi Arabia, supported by the rising athleisure and sporting trends, which support sports socks. On the other hand, the hot climate in the Kingdom, which has extreme summers, plays…

This report examines inflation levels and drivers globally and in key countries in Q4 2023 and 2024. Global inflation is moderating, although divergence remains among the key economies. Higher volatility in the energy markets and disruption of…

Trends seen in sportswear are also influencing footwear, as the sports-inspired and athleisure trends continue. Sporting activities are a large part of the Saudi Vision 2030, and we are seeing this influence trends in sportswear and sports-inspired…

Childrenswear sees overall support from the baseline fact that children need an ongoing supply of clothing as they grow out of their clothes within relatively short periods of time. As such, childrenswear has shorter lifecycles than apparel for women…

Apparel and footwear is seeing both value and volume growth in Saudi Arabia in 2023, thanks to a variety of initiatives under the Saudi Vision 2030 programme. Within this, there are specific government initiatives supporting the apparel and footwear…

Apparel accessories remains in both value and volume slumps in 2023, albeit improving upon the sharper drops seen in 2022. We can attribute this to a normalisation effect following the atypical patterns seen during the era of the pandemic. Notably,…

In 2023, price increases across the sweet spreads will have a dampening effect on retail volume sales. Moreover, as the health and wellness trend in Israel continues apace, many local consumers are less inclined to indulge in sweet spreads, which are…

In 2023, staple foods perform well due to their essential nature. There is a shift towards convenience, as consumers fully resume pre-COVID-19 habits. Bread is the main staple, with rice highly popular. There is also a move to healthier variants as…

Price increases resulting from supply chain issues and the rising costs of raw materials and production are discouraging many Israeli consumers from buying sauces, dips and condiments in 2023. For example, at the end of 2022, Strauss increased the…

Pre-paid cards are benefitting from the Kingdom’s move towards a cashless society – especially so in certain areas. For example, as seen with the uptake of pre-paid cards for the payment of workers’ salaries, notably so for domestic workers. In this…

Ready meals continues to benefit from the convenience trend in Israel, reflected in healthy current value growth in 2023. The enduring popularity of pizza has enabled it to register the strongest current value growth. Still, many local consumers…

Saudi Arabia has taken significant steps to transform itself into a cashless society – starting even before the event of the COVID-19 pandemic, which triggered digital evolution in industries globally. In this regard, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia…