"Retail sales were down in four provinces in July. Lower sales in Quebec and, to a lesser extent, British Columbia, accounted for most of the decrease."
- Statistics Canada
Retail sales' volume in Canada plunged considerably in July of this year after posting strong data a month before. Core sales slipped 0.6% on a monthly basis after six consecutive months of gains to reach $42.55 billion, while economists predicted them to remain unchanged or decrease slightly after a 1.5% jump in June. Indicator, which includes sales of automobiles, edged down 0.1% during the reported time period. Analysts explain the weak data by worse-than-expected sales of fuel, clothes and food, while car deliveries rose 1.6% month-on-month and 8.1% on the annual basis. Overall, sales plummeted in five out of 11 sectors, and they account for 55% of all retail trade.
Next Tuesday, the gross domestic product data for July will be released; however, retail sales are not likely to contribute a big share to the indicator, as they account only for 6% of the GDP. As forecasted, some extra positive growth impetus will be provided by stronger exports and manufacturing sales due to rising deliveries to the United States, Canada's main international trade partner, which accounts for 78.5% of the latter's exports industry. In June the economy of Canada advanced 0.3%, however, with economies of the Eurozone and Japan facing growth problems, it may pose some difficulties for North American market in the foreseeable future.
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