Canada: Retail sales in Ontario increased by 4.6% in 2004
Ontario's retailers recorded C$10.46 billion in sales in March 2005, up from exactly C$10.00 billion in March 2004, a new report from Statistics Canada said. Retail sales increased by 4.6 % in Ontario during 2004, lagging Canada's nationwide gain by more than a percentage point.
The Canadian increase in retail sales was 5.7 % between March 2004 and March 2005.
The biggest jumps in sales volume came at gasoline stations (up 16.7 percent), beer, wine and liquor stores (up 13.0 percent), home electronics and appliance stores (up 12.0 percent) and supermarkets (up 11.3 percent).
All 10 provinces recorded increases in retail sales between March 2004 and March 2005. Gains ranged from 10.8 % in Alberta to 0.8 percent in Prince Edward Island.