You can’t put a price on love… especially when it comes to Valentine’s Day

Press release

Published February 14th, 2017 - 07:23 GMT

You can’t put a price on love… especially when it comes to Valentine’s Day

Whether it’s a small romantic gesture or an extravagant surprise for that special someone, it would appear shoppers around the globe are feeling loved up, spending more on the most romantic day of the year than ever before.

The annual “Mastercard Love Index”, an analysis of payment card transactions over a three-year period, has revealed that sentimental spending in the UAE has increased by 23 percent since 2014. And whilst the majority of purchases still happen in person, love is the latest thing to go digital, with a 43 percent increase in the number of online transactions from Valentine’s Day 2014 to Valentine’s Day 2016.

If you still haven’t picked up something special for your loved one, you’re not alone. Data showed the majority of Valentine’s purchases happen during a last-minute dash on February 13^th, with over 192,000 transactions taking place that day alone over the past three years in the UAE.

Recent years have shown that the stomach is increasingly the way to one’s heart, with spending in restaurants in the country soaring by 43 percent since 2014.

“The Mastercard Love Index highlights key global and regional trends to hopefully offer retailers some priceless insight into how customers want to spend the most romantic day of the year,” commented Eyad Al-Kourdi, General Manager Southern Gulf & MENA Advisor, Mastercard.

The study, which looked at shopper behavior in more than 200 territories around the globe, also identified some other purchasing trends.

The personal touch still matters: Despite the continued growth of online, 95 percent of transactions around Valentine’s Day are still made in person. Those in Latin America showed the biggest shift to online, with an increase of 250 percent from 2014 to 2016, followed by Asia Pacific with an increase of 81 percent and the Middle East and Africa with a 71 percent increase.

REGIONAL TRENDS
Middle East and Africa	Spend most of their Valentine’s Day budget on hotels / motels (43 percent) followed by jewelry (22 percent) Conduct three quarters (75 percent) of their purchases in person Also, bucked the trend in terms of flower sales, up by 30 percent over the three-year period
Asia Pacific	Spend most of their money on hotels / motels during the Valentine’s period – 37 percent, an increase of 33 percent since 2014 Do 85 percent of their Valentine’s Day purchases in person, however online sales have increased by 81 percent in the last three years
Canada	Choose to spend the most on restaurants and eating out during Valentine’s Day period – 34 percent 59 percent of their spending happens in person (the lowest amount across all regions
Europe	Most of their Valentine’s Day spending goes on hotels / motels – 35 percent, an increase of 50 percent in three years Europeans lead the way in terms of spending online compared to other regions, 19 percent of their Valentine’s Day spending is done on e-commerce sites Biggest area of growth in Europe was in restaurants, up by 67 percent during the Valentine’s Day period in three years
Latin America	Biggest growth in terms of online spending, up by 250 percent in three years Bucked the trend in terms of flowers, seeing massive growth of 271 percent between 2014-2016 Also, saw the biggest growth in terms of splashing out on jewelry – up by 66 percent
USA	Love spending their money on food, 44 percent goes on restaurants and has seen the biggest growth across all regions since 2014 – up by 130 percent 90 percent of their purchasing still takes place in person Spending on hotels / motels was also up by 57 percent over the three-year period on Valentine’s Day

Background Information

MasterCard

Electronic payments have the ability to create a world with greater opportunities for all. To take us beyond borders, to new markets. Beyond mere moments, to meaningful experiences. That's the power of a World Beyond Cash®. And that's Priceless®.