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OTTAWA, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- Canadian wholesale sales fell 1.3 percent in December 2020 to 66.5 billion Canadian dollars, the first decline after seven consecutive increases since April, according to Statistics Canada.
In the latest monthly report, the agency attributed the drop to sharply lower sales of motor vehicles and motor vehicle parts and accessories; and machinery, equipment and supplies.
Notwithstanding the 1.3 percent decline in December, sales for the month were still 3 percent higher than levels observed before the COVID-19 pandemic, and were the third-highest for the sector on record, noted the agency.
Sales in five of the seven subsectors were higher than the pre-COVID-19 benchmark, led by building material and supplies, which soared 12.2 percent, and machinery, equipment and supplies, which rose 6.6 percent, it added.
In 2020, sales in the wholesale sector in Canada decreased for the first time since 2009, falling 1 percent to 754 billion Canadian dollars due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
After the effect of prices is removed, total wholesale sales were 689.3 billion Canadian dollars in 2020, which was 0.9 percent lower than in 2019. (One Canadian dollar = 0.79 U.S. dollar) Enditem