Overview
- Statistics Canada reported on Thursday that retail sales fell 0.7% in July to C$73.7 billion and that sales volume, which strips out price effects, dropped 1.1%.
- Sales declined in eight of nine retail subsectors in July with general merchandise retailers posting the largest fall at 1.9% while building materials showed a modest gain.
- Core retail sales, which exclude auto dealers and gasoline, fell 0.7% after a June gain and retail e-commerce slipped 3.5% to 7.5% of total retail trade.
- Provincial results were uneven with Ontario recording the biggest dollar decline at 2.0% and Alberta rising 1.4%, underlining regional differences in consumer demand.
- Statistics Canada’s advance estimate points to a tentative 1.3% rebound in August based on 57.8% of responses and that provisional reading will determine how much July’s weakness affects near-term Bank of Canada policy considerations.