The Canadian retail sector is off to a bright start in 2012, with a Statistics Canada report released on Thursday noting sales were up during the first month of the year.<\/p>\n
While January sales didn't quite meet the expectations of economists, they were up 0.5 percent to C$38.9 billion. Many industry experts projected an overall sales gain of 1.8 percent for the first month of 2012, a number which the sector couldn't meet.<\/p>\n
"Canadian consumers are expected to slow down spending habits in the months and years to come, according to economists, as they manage their record-high household debt loads," Nasdaq notes. "Consumer spending helped Canada's economy recover faster than most of its Group of Seven peers following the financial crisis, powered by record-low borrowing rates."<\/p>\n
Categories doing particularly well include general merchandise stores, retail department chains and apparel.<\/p>\n
The retail sector has similarly been improving in the United States, with many experts anticipating a boom in sales around the Easter holiday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Canadian retail sector is off to a bright start in 2012, with a Statistics Canada report released on Thursday noting sales were up during the first month of the year. Continue reading