Canadian Retail Sales, Leading Indicators fall. | CountingPips Forex Blog

January 22, 2009 - Forex Economic News

Canadian Retail Sales, Leading Indicators fall.

Canadian Retail Sales decreased by the most in over ten years in November according to the monthly report released by Statistics Canada today. Retail sales decreased by 2.4 percent to C$34.9 billion in November following a revised decrease of 1.0 percent in October. The decline in retail sales marked the largest fall since 1998 and surpassed the economic forecasts that Canada's Retail Sales decline in November were predicting a 2.0 percent decline for the month. Core retail sales, excluding automobile sales, fell by 2.3 percent in November following a revised decline of 1.3 percent in October. The decline in core sales also surpassed forecasts expecting only a 1.3 percent decline in November.

Contributing to the slide in the retail sales numbers was a decrease in the automotive industry as sales fell by 7.1 percent in November. Sales at gasoline stations also decreased in November by 14.9 percent and marked the biggest monthly decline since September 2006. Sales in the miscellaneous retailers sector fell by 0.7 percent and sales in general merchandise stores decreased by 0.5 percent. Sales in pharmacies & personal care stores and food & beverages stores increased for the month with increases of 0.5 percent each.

Canada's Leading Indicators decline in December.

A separate report from Statistics Canada showed that the Leading Indicators index declined for the fourth straight month in December. The Leading Indicator Index, which measures future economic activity, fell by 0.6 percent in December following a revised decline of 0.6 percent in November. Four out of the ten measured sectors that make up the leading indicator index showed declines with the other six either sectors increasing or showing no change.

Contributing to the overall index decline were decreases in the stock market index by 7.9 percent and the housing index by 4.5 percent. Other notable declines were the US Conference Board indicator which fell by 0.6 percent and the average workweek which fell by 0.5 percent in December. The largest positive contributor to the index was an increase in the new orders for durable goods which rose by 3.5 percent while the money supply index saw an increase of 1.4 percent for the month. Rounding out the increases for the month were gains by furniture & appliance sales at 0.4 percent and an increase in other durable goods sales by 0.5 percent.

tags: retail sales, CAD, Canada, leading indicators

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