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Canadian wholesale sales unexpectedly dropped by 0.6 per cent in July from June on broad weakness across most sectors, Statistics Canada data indicated on Friday.
The decline – greater than the 0.2-per-cent decrease expected by market analysts – is another sign the Canadian economy is having trouble dealing with economic weakness in Europe and the United States. Statscan revised June's decline to 0.3 per cent from an initial 0.1-per-cent drop.
Five of the seven subsectors, representing 85 per cent of total sales, reported declines. In volume terms, wholesale sales were down by 0.3 per cent in July.
The largest sales decrease in dollar terms was in the food, beverage and tobacco subsector, where sales fell 1.5 per cent. The drop was based solely on weakness in the food industry, where sales fell 2.0 per cent from June.
Sales in the miscellaneous subsector were down 1.7 per cent, a third consecutive decrease. The motor vehicle and parts subsector fell by 0.8 per cent on a 1.4 per cent drop in the motor vehicle industry, which registered its first loss after five months of growth.