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Visa Inc said international travellers spent an additional $716.7 million on their Visa accounts while in the UK during the second week of the London 2012 Olympic Games (July 30 – August 5).
This brings the total spend on Visa accounts in the UK to more than $1.4 billion.
While the biggest Visa spenders still hail from the US, Visa account holders from Russia – one of the top 15 contributors to the London 2012 Olympic Games – had increased travel spend on their Visa accounts by more than 30 per cent for the second week in a row.
The top three spending categories remained the same as the first week of the Olympics.
Services, including items such as shoe and jewellery repair and spas, took $139.1 million; entertainment including theatre tickets and other attractions was at $106.6 million; airlines accounted for $82.4 million.
The clothing category moved up to be the fourth highest spending category with $67.9 million, surpassing other retail at $66.3 million, which includes bike shops, bookstores, antique stores, and drug stores.
The US spent $91 million, which was 13 per cent of the total spend and was the top 10 contributor to the overall spend throughout the UK on Visa accounts during the second week of the Olympics.
Japan was second at $47.4 million accounting for seven per cent of the total spend.
France was at third spot with $44.5 million, followed by Italy at $42.1 million and Australia at $35.3 million.
>amritanair.ghaswalla@thehindu.com
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