- Prior month -0.6%
- Retail sales -0.4% versus -0.4% estimate
- In volume terms, retail sales decreased 0.4% in February.
- Ex auto +0.5% versus -0.4% estimate. Prior month revised from +0.2% to +0.1%
- The advanced report for March show a gain of 0.7% in March.
- Retail sales decreased in seven provinces in February. The largest provincial decrease in dollar terms was observed in Quebec (-0.9%), marking its second consecutive monthly decline. In the Montréal census metropolitan area (CMA), sales were down 2.5%
Details:
- Sales were down in four of nine subsectors and were led by decreases at motor vehicle and parts dealers
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Motor Vehicle and Parts Dealers:
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Overall sales decreased by -2.6% in February.
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All four store types within this subsector saw declines.
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New car dealers led the drop with a -3.0% decrease, marking a second consecutive monthly decline.
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Automotive parts, accessories, and tire retailers also fell by -1.6%.
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Gasoline Stations and Fuel Vendors:
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Sales increased by +0.3% in February, marking the fifth consecutive monthly gain.
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In volume terms, sales rose +0.8%.
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Core retail sales ex Auto details:
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Core Retail Sales:
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Increased +0.5% in February.
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Food and Beverage Retailers:
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Sales rose +2.8%, driving much of the core retail growth.
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Supermarkets and other grocery retailers (excluding convenience stores) increased +3.7%, rebounding from a -3.2% decline in January.
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Beer, wine, and liquor retailers contributed with a +2.3% increase.
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General Merchandise Retailers:
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Sales were up +1.2% in February.
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Furniture, Home Furnishings, Electronics, and Appliances Retailers:
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Experienced the largest decline among core retail categories with a -2.9% decrease
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This article was written by Greg Michalowski at www.forexlive.com.
