Retail Trade, April 2016, published June 22
Retail sales in April were $44.3 billion, up 0.9% from March and an increase of 4.6% from April 2015. Excluding sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers and by gasoline stations, retail sales were up by 4.7% from April 2015. Retail sales in volume terms were virtually unchanged from the 1.3% decline posted in March. Increases in month-over-month sales were reported in 7 of 11 sectors representing 64% of retail trade. April 2016 sales over April 2015 were up in all provinces. Prince Edward Island experienced the largest monthly gain (+8.2%), followed by British Columbia (+7.9%) and...
Read MoreWholesale Trade, April 2016, published June 20
Wholesalers sold $54.8 billion worth of goods and services in April, up 0.1% from March but 0.2% lower than in April 2015. Excluding the automotive sector, wholesale sales were also down 0.2% from April 2015. In terms of volume, wholesale sales were up 0.2% in April from March. Annualized wholesale sales were up in four provinces. British Columbia (+5.8%) led the way, followed by New Brunswick (+5.5%). Ontario’s annualized gain was 2.6% while Quebec reported a 1.2% year-over-year increase. Saskatchewan experienced the largest loss (-16.0%), followed by Alberta (-11.4%)....
Read MoreConsumer Price Index, May, 2016, published June 17, (2002=100)
The Consumer Price Index rose by 1.5% in May compared with May 2015, after an annualized increase of 1.7% in April. The CPI in May for goods was up 1.1% from a year earlier while the CPI for services rose 1.9%. Gasoline prices in May were down 7.1% from May 2015, after dropping 5.8% in April. Overall, energy prices declined 3.6% between May 2015 and May 2016, following a 3.2% annualized rate of decrease in April. Excluding energy, the annualized Consumer Price Index rose 1.9% in May, down from 2.1% in April. Food prices rose 1.8% in the 12 months to May, after the 3.2% rate of...
Read MoreBuilding Permits, April 2016, published June 8
Municipalities issued $6.9 billion worth of building permits in April, down 0.3% from March and 8.1% lower than in April 2015. Five provinces reported an increase in permits over a year ago. New Brunswick reported the largest gain, (+104.8%) followed by Manitoba (+54.3%). The largest annualized losses occurred in Newfoundland and Labrador (-47.2%), and Nova Scotia (-38.9%). Ontario recorded an annualized decrease of 14.3% while Quebec posted a 6.6% year-over-year gain. Builders took out residential building permits worth $4.3 billion in April, down 1.8% from March and 4.1% lower than in...
Read MoreLabour Force Survey, May 2016, published June 10
Employment in May increased by 14,000 from April. The unemployment rate was 6.9%, down from 7.1% in April. Construction employment was up 1.3% from April and manufacturing employment increased 0.7% from a month earlier. In May, employment stood at just over 18.0 million, up 0.6% from May 2015. Full-time employment grew by 60,500 from April, while part-time employment decreased by 46,800 from the previous month. Full time employment was up by 127,000 from May 2015, while part-time employment declined by 18,500 over the same period. Employment over the past 12 months grew in five...
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