This is the main conclusion of REDUNIQ Insights, a report from REDUNIQ, the largest national acceptance network for national and foreign cards and a UNICRE brand, which concludes that between March 22 and 24, 2024, and compared to last year’s event period (from March 24 to 26, 2023), business turnover in the Algarve grew, with this increase being more significant in foreign turnover (+ 16%) than in national turnover (+ 11%).
When analysing the dates of greatest consumption in this period, the company concluded that on the Sunday of the race (24 March 2024) and compared to the Sunday of the race last year (26 March 2023), there was an increase in turnover and the number of transactions of 22% and 21%, respectively.
For Tiago Oom, Chief Commercial Officer of UNICRE and official spokesperson for REDUNIQ Insights “this positive performance corroborates the economic impact estimates of around 80 million euros and close to 200 thousand people in assistance shared by Turismo do Algarve and the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve (AIA) during the second stage of the Moto GP World Championship”.
During the period under analysis, REDUNIQ Insights reveals that, on the foreign turnover side, the largest contribution came from the United Kingdom, which represents 11% of total turnover in Faro on the weekend of the competition. Behind are Ireland and Germany with 8% and 5%, respectively, which confirm the top of nationalities also recorded at last year’s event. In relation to the value of the average purchase, Ireland stands out with a value of approximately €102. As Tiago Oom explains, “holding this type of event, and particularly a week before Easter, ends up attracting many foreign consumers to the Algarve region, but also a high influx, both national and international, of those interested in this competition, which is so recognized worldwide”.
With regard to total turnover by sector of activity, the categories of catering (+17%), traditional food retail (+17%) and hotel and tourist activities (+12) stand out – with foreign turnover accounting for an increase of 19%, 18% and 14% in these categories, respectively.