Statistics
Canada announced on Friday that wholesale sales (excluding petroleum and
oilseed and grain) climbed 1.0 per cent m-o-m to CAD83.69 billion in October, following
an unrevised 0.8 per cent m-o-m rise in September. This represented the strongest monthly
advance in wholesale sales since April (+2.4 per cent m-o-m).
Economists had predicted
a 0.5 per cent m-o-m gain for October.
According to
the report, sales grew in six of the seven subsectors, accounting for 87.8 per cent of total wholesale sales. The motor
vehicle and motor vehicle parts and accessories (+3.2 per cent m-o-m) and building
material and supplies (+4.5 per cent m-o-m) subsectors posted the largest increases
in sales in October. Meanwhile, the miscellaneous subsector was
the sole decliner.
In y-o-y terms,
wholesale sales (excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other
hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain) surged 1.7 per cent in October.