January retail sales rise 2.5 percent YOY

Retail sales reached $56.3 billion in January, an increase of 2.5 percent compared with the same month one year earlier, says Statistics Canada. Higher sales were reported in 11 of the 18 commodity classes.

The largest increase in dollar terms came from sales of motor vehicles, which rose 7.9 percent in January compared with the same month in 2023. Retail sales of food and beverages grew 4.1 percent in January and retail sales in the hardware, tools and renovation and lawn and garden products rose four percent to $3.34 billion.

The largest decline in dollar terms came from lower sales of automotive and household fuels (-7.0 percent). With lower prices seen at the pump, sales of automotive fuels posted a decline of 6.7 percent, compared with the same month in 2023.