Canada’s core retail sales fall 0.7% in April despite overall monthly gain
Key takeaways
- Canada’s core retail sales fall 0.7% in April despite overall monthly gain Total retail sales rose 0.5% from March to C$73bn.
- Sales also dropped 1.5% at book, hobby, miscellaneous, musical instrument and sporting goods retailers, extending declines in that category for a second month.
- The strongest increase within core retail categories came from building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers, where sales rose 3.3% in April after a 4.5% decline in March.
Canada’s core retail sales fall 0.7% in April despite overall monthly gain Total retail sales rose 0.5% from March to C$73bn. Credit: ACHPF / Shutterstock.com. · Retail Insight Network · ACHPF / Shutterstock.com. Kuldeep Jha Mon, June 22, 2026 at 8:41 PM GMT+7 2 min read Core retail sales in Canada declined 0.7% in April, marking a second consecutive monthly decrease, even as total retail sales rose 0.5% from March to C$73bn ($51.6bn), according to Statistics Canada.
The fall in core retail sales, which excludes gasoline stations and fuel vendors, as well as motor vehicle and parts dealers, was mainly due to weaker sales at food and beverage retailers, down 2%, and general merchandise retailers, down 1.7%.
Sales also dropped 1.5% at book, hobby, miscellaneous, musical instrument and sporting goods retailers, extending declines in that category for a second month.