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Summary
- Canada recorded the largest decline in retail sales in the month of December 2020 since pandemic-triggered April lows, noted Statistics Canada.
- Retail sales sank by 3.4 per cent month-over-month to C$ 53.4 billion in December, slowed down by poor business in nine out of 11 subsectors.
- However, retail sales reflected a quarterly growth of about 1.2 per cent in Q4 2020.
As public health measures tightened near the end of the year in the midst of rising coronavirus cases, Canada recorded the largest decline in retail sales in the month of December 2020 since pandemic-triggered April lows, noted Statistics Canada.
Retail sales sank by 3.4 per cent month-over-month to C$ 53.4 billion in December, slowed down by poor business in nine out of 11 subsectors. In terms of volume, the numbers were down by about 3.6 per cent in the said month.
Core retail sales, which works as an indicator of consumer spending for business categories excluding gasoline stations and motor vehicle/parts dealerships, also recorded its slowest growth since April 2020. After continued growth in November, the numbers declines by 4.6 per cent in December due to decreased sales at general stores and outlets that sold products such as clothing, accessories, sporting goods, hobby items, etc.
However, retail sales reflected a quarterly growth of about 1.2 per cent in Q4 2020, while the numbers were up by 0.8 per cent quarter-over-quarter in terms of volume.
©Kalkine Group 2021
Which Canadian Regions Recorded the Sharpest Fall in Retail Sales in December?
With the reintroduction of COVID-related social distancing and lockdown protocols around December, StatCan found that about 15 per cent of retail stores in were forced to remain closed for business during the month. And with December being a time for holiday and seasonal shopping, the lockdown impacted businesses quite gravely.
Retail sales were lowered in every Canadian region for December, but provinces of Ontario, British Columbia and Manitoba recorded the highest drop. Ontario in particular, which observed strict COVID-19 measures during this time, saw the sharpest fall of 6.5 per cent month-over-month in December.
Based on responses that the Canadian data agency received from 51 per cent of the enterprises that its surveyed for this study, Statistics Canada has projected that retail sales will post a decline of about 3.3 per cent for January 2021.
