Investing.com -- Retail sales in Canada remained largely unchanged in November, with declines in six of the nine subsectors. The most notable drop was seen in food and beverage retailers, which experienced a 1.6% decrease in sales.
However, this decline was mostly counterbalanced by a rise in sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers, which saw a 2.0% increase, and gasoline stations and fuel vendors, which reported a 0.7% increase in sales.
When excluding sales at gasoline stations, fuel vendors, and motor vehicle and parts dealers, core retail sales actually fell by 1.0% in November.
In terms of volume, retail sales experienced a 0.4% drop in November.
Core retail sales, which saw a 1.0% decrease in November, posted their largest decline in half a year. This fall was primarily driven by lower sales at food and beverage retailers, which fell by 1.6%. Supermarkets and other grocery retailers (excluding convenience retailers) contributed the most to this decline with a 1.5% decrease in sales. Beer, wine, and liquor retailers also reported lower receipts, falling 2.9% for the second consecutive month.
Additionally, sales at general merchandise retailers dropped by 1.0%, and building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers reported a 2.1% decrease in sales for November.
On the other hand, motor vehicle and parts dealers saw the largest increase in retail sales for November, with a 2.0% rise. All four store types within this subsector reported gains, led by new car dealers, which experienced a 2.4% increase in sales. This marks the fourth increase in sales in the past five months for new car dealers. Automotive parts, accessories and tire retailers and other motor vehicle dealers also reported increases in sales, with rises of 0.9% and 0.8% respectively.
Sales at gasoline stations and fuel vendors reported a 0.7% increase in November, following six consecutive months of declines. However, in volume terms, sales at these outlets actually decreased by 0.8%.
Retail sales fell in seven provinces in November, with the largest decreases in dollar terms seen in Alberta (-1.1%) and New Brunswick (NYSE:BC) (-2.0%).
Ontario, on the other hand, saw the largest provincial increase in retail sales in November, with a 0.5% rise, primarily driven by higher sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers. In the Toronto metropolitan area, retail sales were up 1.1% for the month.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, retail e-commerce in Canada fell 1.2% to $4.1 billion in November, making up 6.1% of total retail trade compared to 6.2% in October.
Statistics Canada has provided an advance estimate of retail sales for December, suggesting a 1.6% increase. However, this figure is subject to revision, as it is based on responses received from 48.3% of the companies surveyed. The average final response rate for the survey over the previous 12 months was 88.4%.
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