Canada Retail Sales Mom

Retail sales in Canada likely rose by 0.7% from the previous month in March 2025, according to preliminary estimates. This comes after a 0.4% decline in February, bringing sales to C$69.4 billion, in line with the initial estimate and marking the second consecutive month of declining retail sales. Sales were down in four of nine subsectors and were led by decreases at motor vehicle and parts dealers (-2.6%), with all four store categories in this subsector registering declines. On the other hand, the largest increases were seen for food and beverage retailers (+2.8%) and miscellaneous store retailers (+2.3%). Core retail sales, which exclude gasoline stations and fuel vendors and motor vehicle and parts dealers, were up 0.5% in February. Retail sales fell across seven provinces, with Nova Scotia (-2.6%) and Quebec (-0.9%) leading the declines, while Manitoba saw the largest increase (+1.8%). On a yearly basis, retail turnover surged 4.7% in February.