Released: 2022-01-21
Retail sales — Canada
$58.1 billion
November 2021
0.7%
(monthly change)
Retail sales — NL
$874.7 million
November 2021
1.5% 
(monthly change)
Retail sales — P.E.I.
$264.6 million
November 2021
-1.2% 
(monthly change)
Retail sales — N.S.
$1,598.7 million
November 2021
-0.2%
(monthly change)
Retail sales — N.B.
$1,320.0 million
November 2021
3.0%
(monthly change)
Retail sales — Que.
$12,701.1 million
November 2021
1.2%
(monthly change)
Retail Sales – Ont.
$21,197.8 million
November 2021
0.5%
(monthly change)
Retail sales — Man.
$2,042.4 million
November 2021
-00.8%
(monthly change)
Retail sales – Sask.
$1,893.0 million
November 2021
2.3%
(monthly change)
Retail sales – Alta.
$7,733.5 million
November 2021
0.1%
(monthly change)
Retail sales — B.C.
$8,254.3 million
November 2021
0.8%
(monthly change)
Retail sales — Yn
$78.3 million
November 2021
-00.8%
(monthly change)
Retail Sales — NWT
$76.3 million
November 2021
2.4%
(monthly change)
Retail sales — Nvt.
$45.3 million
November 2021
-00.9%
(monthly change)
Retail sales rose 0.7% to $58.1 billion in November. The increase was mainly attributable to higher sales at gas stations (+4.9%), building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers (+3.0%) and food stores (+1.0%).
Sales increased in 6 of 11 subsectors, representing 63.8% of retail trade.
Basic retails—wwhich exclude gas stations and motor vehicle and parts dealershipsifincreased by 0.5%.
Expressed in volume, retail sales rose 0.2% in November.
In November, severe flooding in British Columbia and the Atlantic Provinces damaged infrastructure and led to evacuations in affected areas, causing significant disruption to retailer business across the country. Based on respondent feedback, 21% of retailers have been impacted by flooding and evacuations in British Columbia and the Atlantic provinces, with 16% of retailers reporting transportation disruption as the most touched.
Given the rapidly changing economic situation, Statistics Canada provides an advance estimate of retail sales, which suggests that sales fell 2.1% in December. Due to its early nature, this figure will be revised. This unofficial estimate was calculated based on responses received from 50.6% of the companies surveyed. The average final response rate to the survey over the past 12 months was 90.0%.
Chart 1
Retail sales up in November
Rising Gas Station Sales Lead to Rising Retail Sales
Sales at gasoline stations rose 4.9% in November, the fastest pace of growth in this subsector in five months. In volume, sales increased by 3.5%.
Sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers fell 0.3% in November. Weaker sales were observed at other motor vehicle dealerships (-4.9%) and used car dealerships (-10.3%), which fell for the first time in six months. Sales at new car dealers edged up 0.1% in November.
Core retail sales rise on higher sales at building materials and garden equipment and supplies dealers and food and beverage stores
Core retail sales rose 0.5% in November. Higher sales at building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers (+3.0%) led the gain. Although sales in this subsector have increased for four consecutive months, they have not reached the highs recorded in March 2021 and are similar to the level recorded a year earlier, in November 2020.
Higher sales were recorded at food stores (+1.0%) in November 2021. The increase was mainly due to receipts from supermarkets and other grocery stores (+1.6%) and, to a lesser measure, beer, wine and liquor stores (+0.4). %).
Clothing and clothing accessories stores (+3.0%) also contributed to the increase in retail sales. Higher sales at clothing stores (+3.1%), up for the second consecutive month, led the gain and more than offset the decline at shoe stores (-0.4%). Sales at jewelry, luggage and leather goods stores (+5.7%) increased after declining in October.
Sporting goods, hobby, book and music stores (-10.0%) posted the largest drop in retail sales. The decline follows strong growth in October, when higher sales of sporting and leisure goods were recorded.
Chart 2
Sales up in 6 of 11 subsectors in November
Sales up in seven provinces
Retail sales rose in seven provinces in November, led by higher sales in Quebec (+1.2%). In the census metropolitan area of Montreal, sales rose 0.9%.
Following strong growth in October (+2.4%), retail sales in Ontario rose 0.5% in November. Higher sales at gas stations and at building material and gardening equipment and supplies dealers contributed to the increase.
Sales in British Columbia rose 0.8% in November due to flooding and landslides that affected the province. The main increases were higher sales at gas stations and at food and beverage stores.
Online retail in Canada
On a seasonally adjusted basis, retail e-commerce sales fell 3.5% in November.
On an unadjusted basis, online retail sales increased 1.1% year over year to $4.3 billion in November, accounting for 6.9% of the total retail trade. The share of e-commerce sales in total retail sales decreased by 0.4 percentage points compared to November 2020, coinciding with limited Cyber Monday sales at retailers amid climate constraints. supply chain in November 2021.
Notice to readers
All data in this release is seasonally adjusted and expressed in current dollars, unless otherwise indicated.
Seasonally adjusted data is data that has been modified to remove the effect of seasonal and calendar influences to allow more meaningful comparisons of economic conditions from period to period. To learn more about seasonal adjustment, see Seasonally adjusted data – Frequently asked questions.
The percentage change in the retail sales advance estimate is calculated using seasonally adjusted data and is expressed in current dollars.
This early indicator is a special product provided in the context of COVID-19 pandemic to provide Canadians with timely information on the retail sector. The data sources and methodology used are exactly the same as those described on the Monthly Retail Trade Survey information page.
Trend-cycle estimates are included in some charts in addition to the seasonally adjusted series. These data represent a smoothed version of the seasonally adjusted time series and provide insight into longer-term movements, including directional changes underlying the series. For more information on trend-cycle data, see Trend-cycle estimates – Frequently Asked Questions.
Seasonally adjusted data and trend-cycle estimates are subject to revision as additional observations become available. These revisions could be large and could even lead to a reversal of movement, especially for reference months towards the end of the series or during periods of economic disruption.
Seasonally adjusted estimates for cannabis store retailers are presented in an unadjusted form since there is not yet a seasonal trend established by official statistics. Establishing such a pattern requires several months of observed data. In the meantime, the seasonally adjusted estimates for cannabis store retailers will be identical to the unadjusted figures.
Statistics Canada’s online retail figures include e-sales from two distinct types of retailers. The first type has no showcase. These businesses are commonly referred to as pure Internet retailers and are classified under the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code 45411 — electronic shopping and mail-order businesses. The second type has a storefront and is commonly referred to as a brick and mortar retailer. If a physical retailer’s online operations are managed separately, they are also classified under NAICS code 45411.
Some common e-commerce transactions, such as travel and accommodation reservations, ticket purchases and financial transactions, are not included in the Canadian retail sales figures.
For more information on online retail in Canada, see “Online Retail in Canada”.
Total retail sales expressed in volume are calculated by deflating current dollar values using consumer price indices.
Find more retail statistics.
Real-time tables
Real-time tables 20-10-0054-01 and 20-10-0079-01 will be updated soon.
next release
Retail trade data for December 2021 will be released on February 18, 2022.
Contact information
For more information, or to inquire about the concepts, methods, or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).
