Duty free sales at King Khalid International Airport (KKIA) grew by 33.5% in February versus the same month in 2019, according to operator Riyadh Airports Company (RAC).

The result represents an 11.5 percentage point increase on January month-on-month and is notably up on December’s single-digit rise, both compared with their corresponding figures in 2019.

Despite being shorter in length, February was the fourth highest duty free sales month for KKIA after December 2021, December 2019 and January 2020.

Year-to-date duty free sales are up 28% on 2019, added RAC.

Abdulaziz Al Asaker, Acting VP Commercial at RAC, said: “These are exciting and unprecedented times in Riyadh as the country moves toward realising KSA’s Aviation Strategy and Vision 2030.

“We are delighted to see how strongly the business has returned to KKIA. With the continued relaxation of Covid restrictions locally and internationally, and working closely with our retail and commercial partners, airlines, and other stakeholders, we expect to see this momentum build further as the year progresses.”