Wholesalers sold $55.3 billion worth of goods and services in June, up 1.3% from May and 3.6% higher than in June 2014. Excluding the automotive sector, wholesale sales were up 2.3% from June 2014.
In terms of volume, wholesale sales were up 1.1% in June from May.
Annualized wholesale sales grew in seven provinces. Prince Edward Island (+8.3%) led the way, followed by Nova Scotia (+8.2%) and Ontario (+7.0%). Quebec’s wholesale sales were up 3.9% from June 2014. Manitoba (-6.4%), Alberta (-5.8%) and New Brunswick (-2.2%) were the three provinces to experience losses.
Wholesalers’ inventories in June increased 1.1% from May to $72.5 billion, their 18th consecutive monthly gain and their highest level on record. They were up 10.0% from June 2014. Gains were recorded in six of the seven sectors, representing 82% of wholesale inventories. The largest monthly increase, in dollar terms, was accounted for by the personal and household goods sector (+1.5%). The monthly decrease for the building materials and supplies industry was 0.6% and was the second consecutive monthly decline for the sector. The inventory-to-sales ratio was 1.31 in June, unchanged from May. The ratio is a measure of the time in months required to exhaust inventories if sales were to remain at their current level.
Wholesale sales of building materials and supplies were $7.7 billion in June, up from $7.6 billion in May but a 0.9% decrease from June 2014. This was the first year-over year loss after annualized sales gains for 17 consecutive months. Inventories were valued at $12.8 billion, down 0.6% from May but 8.2% higher than in June 2014.
Wholesale sales of electrical, plumbing, heating and air-conditioning equipment and supplies stood at $2.4 billion in June, up 2.6% from May and 4.2% higher than in June 2014. Inventories were valued at $3.4 billion, up 1.5% from May and 11.1% higher than in June 2014.
Wholesale sales of metal service centres were $1.5 billion in June, up 0.4% from May but a decrease of 12.0% from June 2014. Inventories were valued at $3.6 billion, down 3.1% from May but a 4.4% increase from June 2014.
Wholesale sales of lumber, millwork, hardware and other building supplies were $3.7 billion in June, up 0.5% from May and a 1.1% increase from June 2014. Inventories were valued at $5.7 billion, down 0.1% from May but a 9.1% increase over June 2014.