Loaves of bread are displayed for sale as an employee stocks shelves at a grocery store in Vancouver, British Columbia.Ben Nelms/Bloomberg
Statistics Canada says wholesale sales fell 0.2 per cent to $58.9-billion in February, led by lower sales in the personal and household goods and the food, beverage and tobacco subsectors.
The move lower followed four consecutive monthly increases.
Economists had expected a drop of 1.0 per cent for the month, according to Thomson Reuters.
Sales fell in four of seven subsectors in February, accounting for 54 per cent of total wholesale sales.
The personal and household goods subsector posted the largest decline in dollar terms in February as it fell 1.7 per cent to $8.3-billion. The food, beverage and tobacco subsector dropped 1.0 per cent to $11.0-billion, led by the food industry.
In volume terms, wholesale sales decreased 0.4 per cent.