Wholesale Trade, December 2014, published February 18
Wholesalers sold $55.4 billion worth of goods and services in December, up 2.5% from November and 11.2% higher than in December 2013. Excluding the automotive sector, wholesale sales were up 9.0% from December 2013. In terms of volume, wholesale sales were up +2.4% in December from November. Annualized wholesale sales grew in nine provinces. Saskatchewan (+25.6%) led the way, followed by Nova Scotia (+17.8%) and Ontario (+13.9%). Quebec’s wholesale sales were up 5.3% from December 2013. Prince Edward lsland sustained the only loss (-2.5%). Wholesalers’ inventories in December...
Read MoreLabour Force Survey, January 2015, published February 6
Employment in January was up 35,400 from December. The unemployment rate was 6.6%, down from 6.7% in December. Construction employment was up 0.3% from December while manufacturing employment grew by 0.6% from a month earlier. In January, employment stood at 17.9 million, up 0.7% from January 2014. Full-time employment dropped by 11,800 from December, while part-time employment increased by 47,200 from the previous month. Full-time employment was up by 107,800 from January 2014, while part-time grew by 19,900 over the same period. Employment over the past year grew in five provinces. ...
Read MoreBuilding Permits, December 2014, published February 6
Municipalities issued $7.1 billion worth of building permits in December, up 7.7% from November and 10.4% higher than in December 2013. Seven provinces reported an increase in permits over a year ago. The largest increase was recorded in Manitoba (+82.5%) followed by Nova Scotia (+66.9%) and Prince Edward Island (+53.2%). The year-over-year losses were recorded in Quebec (-34.3%) followed by Saskatchewan (-12.3%) and Newfoundland and Labrador (-8.1%). Ontario posted a 24.8% annualized gain. Builders took out residential building permits worth $4.4 billion in December, unchanged from...
Read MoreRetail Trade, November 2014, published January 23
Retail sales in November were $43.0 billion, up 0.4% from October and an increase of 4.8% from November 2013. Excluding sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers and by gasoline stations, retail sales were up by 4.5% from November 2013. Statistics Canada attributed the sales increase to unseasonably cold weather, the timing of new product releases as well as promotional events. Retail sales in volume terms were up 0.8% from October. Increases in month-over-month sales were reported in 5 of 11 sectors representing 27% of retail trade. November 2014 sales over November 2013 were up in...
Read MoreConsumer Price Index, December 2014, published January 23, (2002=100)
The Consumer Price Index rose by 1.5% in December compared with December 2013, down from the 2.0% rate of annualized increase in November. The CPI in December for goods was up 0.7% from a year earlier while the CPI for services rose 2.1%. Gasoline prices decreased 16.6% from December 2013, after falling 5.9% in November. Overall, energy prices fell 6.4% between December 2013 and December 2014, following a 0.6% annualized rate of increase in November. Excluding energy, the annualized Consumer Price Index rose 2.2% in December, unchanged from November. Food prices rose 3.7% in the 12...
Read MoreBuilding Permits, November 2014, published January 9
Municipalities issued $6.6 billion worth of building permits in November, down 13.8% from October and 2.7% lower than in November 2013. Three provinces reported an increase in permits over a year ago. The largest increase was recorded in Manitoba (+57.9%) followed by Nova Scotia (+10.6%). The largest year-over-year losses were recorded in New Brunswick (-43.3%) followed by Newfoundland and Labrador (-35.4%) and Prince Edward Island (-34.3%). Ontario recorded a 22.4% annualized decline, while Quebec’s gain was 3.5%. Builders took out residential building permits worth $4.4...
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