Seasonally-adjusted Canadian retail sales fell by 0.1% in September to $51.6 billion (after an upwardly revised 0.1% in August), driven by lower sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers and at gasoline stations. Retail sales were down in 6 of 11 sub-sectors. Regionally, 7 of 10 provinces reported declines in September with notable declines in Alberta (-1.6%) and New Brunswick (-3.7%).

In B.C., seasonally-adjusted retail sales fell by 0.2% to $7.2 billion in September, driven by a decline in sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers and in food and beverage stores. Vancouver also reported a monthly decrease of 0.9% in sales. Declining provincial sales were reported in all sub-sectors except for building material and garden equipment. Compared to the same time last year, B.C. retail sales were down by 0.8% in September.

Copyright British Columbia Real Estate Association. Reprinted with permission.