South Africa's Black Friday 2024 shattered expectations with just three banks reporting more than R30-billion spent. Supermarkets led spending, while beauty and electronics boomed online.

Although the latest FNB/Bureau for Economic Research Consumer Confidence Index has slipped one point since the fourth quarter, the reading of -6 is the highest festive season number since before the Covid-19 pandemic broke out. The upsurge in consumer sentiment since the end of 2023 points to a pronounced increase in consumers' willingness to spend compared to last year's peak trading period.

"Consumers' ability to spend has also improved notably, bolstered by lower inflation, 50-basis points of interest rate cuts and an estimated R40-billion in the two-pot retirement system payouts in 2024. The combination of much-improved willingness and ability to spend - particularly among affluent consumers, the group with the greatest spending power - suggests that retail tills will jingle much louder this festive season," FNB chief economist Mamello Matikinca-Ngwenya said.

And spend consumers have, as Black Friday statistics clearly show.

Capitec customers shot the lights out, splashing R25.4-billion on shopping, fast food, and essentials such as pharmacy items. The bank reports that it processed 13,666 Shein transactions, more than 52,000 Takealot orders, and more than 560,000 lottery ticket purchases among other transactions.

Standout Nedbank-facilitated transactions on Black...