Global Blue, one of the world’s leaders in tax refund services, published its quarterly “Globe Shopper Spending Insights in Lebanon” report, conveying a 12.2% annual increase in the value of tax-free spending in Lebanon in Q1-2019. In detail, tax-free spending by tourists from Qatar, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia rose by a yearly 83.9%, 67.0%, and 45.1% respectively by end of Q1-2019, with the spike in spending by Saudi Arabian tourists coming in the wake of the lifting of travel restrictions following the formation of the new government. Nevertheless tax-free spending by French, Syrian and Emirati tourists fell by 28.7%, 12.1% and 0.6% respectively. From another standpoint, tourists from Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia also recorded the largest increase in the number of refund transactions which stood at 51.7%, 32.6% and 27.9% respectively. Conversely, the number of refund transactions fell for tourists coming from France (-20.5%), Jordan (-13.3%), and the United States of America (-6.5%). Overall, the number of refund transactions came in 5.8% higher on a yearly basis during the first quarter of 2019.

The lion’s share of tax-free spending goes to Saudi (15%) tourists, followed by Emirati (10%), Kuwaiti (9%), Qatari (8%), and Syrian (7%) tourists, as sketched in the chart below:

Category-wise, “Fashion & Clothing” articles accounted for 67% of total tourist spending in Q1-2019, trailed, and by far, by “Watches & Jewelry” items (19%) and each of “Department Stores” (4%) and “Home & Garden” appliances (3%). As far as the geographical distribution of spending is concerned, Beirut, which hosts most pertinent shopping malls and brands, amassed 83% of total tax-free spending, followed by the Metn (12%) and Baabda (2%) regions.