Israelis Spend Record 53 Billion Shekels in September Holiday Spending Spree
Translated & summarized from Cursorinfo by baba
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Israeli bank card spending reached a record 53.252 billion shekels in September 2026.
- The Tishrei holidays falling entirely in September fueled a significant increase in consumer spending.
- Online purchases were the main driver of the record spending, reaching 30.961 billion shekels.
- Food remained the largest expenditure category, followed by notable increases in leisure and travel.
- Spending in physical stores saw a slight daily decrease, while cash withdrawals also declined.
Israeli consumers set a new spending record in September 2026, with total expenditures via bank cards reaching 53.252 billion shekels. This figure represents a 6.2% increase compared to September of the previous year, when spending totaled 50.132 billion shekels. The surge in spending is largely attributed to the concentration of the Tishrei holidays within September 2026, a calendar anomaly that led to a full month of festivities and increased consumption.
Daily average spending on bank cards within Israel hit a record 1.775 billion shekels in September, surpassing the previous record set in August 2026 by 1.7%. This marks the fourth consecutive month where average daily spending has exceeded 1.7 billion shekels, according to data from the Automated Banking Services Directorate, which manages national payment systems. Online purchases were identified as the primary driver of this growth.
Food remained the largest spending category, accounting for 6.6 billion shekels, with prices also seeing an increase. Significant year-over-year spending jumps were observed in leisure and entertainment (up 17.78%), hotels and accommodations (up 17.59%), and restaurants and cafes (up 11%). Travel-related expenses also rose, with spending on tourist agencies increasing by 10% and on Israeli airlines by 3.84%.
Online spending reached a record average of 30.961 billion shekels for the month, a 5.5% increase from September 2025. Daily average online spending also hit a new high of 1.032 billion shekels. In contrast, average daily spending in physical stores decreased by 2% compared to August 2026, though it was still up 7.2% from September 2025. Cash withdrawals from ATMs also declined by 1.8% year-over-year.
Fuel expenses saw an 8.39% increase, reaching 1.913 billion shekels, influenced by both price hikes and increased travel during the holidays. A notable trend observed since June is increased fuel spending in the last two days of each month, driven by anticipated price increases announced by the Ministry of Energy.
