Canada: May retail sales suffered from social distancing measure – NFB
Data released on Friday showed retail sales in Canada dropped in May 2.1%, the second consecutive slide in a row. According to National Bank of Canada analysts the preliminary numbers for June should help limit annualized losses in Q2. They point out, sales remain above the pre-pandemic level.
Key Quotes:
“Once again in May, retail sales suffered from social distancing measures imposed to limit the spread of COVID-19. Statistics Canada noted that 5.6% of shops were closed at some time during the month, up from 5% in April. Unsurprisingly, the sectors most dependent on social contacts – notably clothing – suffered some losses in the month.”
“Statistics Canada is flagging a 4.4% rise in retail sales in June, which would limit annualized losses in the second quarter of the year to 3.0%.”
“Looking further ahead, we expect Canadians to shift some of their spending towards services as the economy re-opens more completely. That said, consumer outlays on goods should remain relatively strong considering the savings amassed by households during the crisis.”
Author
Matías Salord
FXStreet
Matías started in financial markets in 2008, after graduating in Economics. He was trained in chart analysis and then became an educator. He also studied Journalism. He started writing analyses for specialized websites before joining FXStreet.
