Absa Insights Series

While Black Friday 2024 marked a modest improvement over the previous year’s dismal performance, it fell short of the double-digit growth achieved in 2022. The post-payday boost contributed to a rise in overall card spending from 3% to 6% during Black Friday 2024, despite a slight softening in transaction volumes.

Consume This, CGS Monthly: Volume 10. After a dip in September, card spending and transaction volumes rebounded strongly in October. This uptick can be attributed to factors such as the recent 2-pot retirement reform and overall economic improvement. This positive trend is particularly promising  for this Black Friday, Cyber Monday and upcoming Festive Season.

In an era of accelerated change, navigating the vast consumer goods and services landscape can be daunting. This newsletter forms part of a series of reports curated by industry experts, leveraging Absa internal and global data sources, as well as local research across the consumer goods and services sector to bring you the latest insights and trends.

American novelist, Herman Melville once wrote: “It is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation.” This quote felt apt as we review consumer habits and the annual “Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday” trade events.

Is the two-pot retirement system giving consumers extra money to spend? We know the financial health of the consumer has been under strain for a prolonged period, leading to a decline in card spending and volumes. The latest Merchant Spend Analytics reports how consumers may be using a portion of their two-pot retirement system payouts to settle short-term debt and restore household spending.

Could consumer spending be on an upward trend? We are excited to share our latest Merchant Spend Analytics report. The report offers insights on consumer spending habits, derived from a vast array of card transaction data. By examining patterns and trends within this data, we have gained valuable insights into the preferences, behaviours and spending power of consumers across various categories.

Black Friday, once synonymous with long queues, crowded stores, and deep discounts, seems to be losing its luster. 2023 marked a significant shift in Black Friday spending patterns compared to the previous year.

Consumers are feeling the pinch! South African consumers’ financial health is under significant strain due to inflation, high interest rates and global economic challenges which have burdened them with debt. Despite a slight increase in real take-home pay for consumers, the growth is insufficient to keep up with the rising cost of living and high levels of debt.

We are pleased to share the latest Merchant Spend Analytics report. As a leading merchant acquirer, we pride ourselves on using a unique vantage point into consumer spending insights to guide your business through today’s spending trends.

Navigating the vast consumer goods and services environment during a time of rapid change does not need to be daunting.

In this podcast, we explore the opportunities of the African Continental Free Trade Area’s protocol on digital trade. What will it mean for cross-border trade, and what do African businesses need to know?

Africa is a patchwork of independent and overlapping regional economic blocs. Rather than simplifying matters, the African Continental Free Trade Area adds an extra layer of complexity for businesses trading on the continent. In this podcast, we untangle the mess.