Canada April Wholesale Sales Up 1.5%, Most Since May 2011

By Nirmala Menon

OTTAWA--Canada's April wholesale sales trounced expectations to grow at the fastest monthly rate in nearly a year as soaring exports of fertilizers helped drive the largest gain in sales of agricultural supplies since May 2008.

Wholesale sales grew 1.5% - the most since May 2011 - to 49.35 billion Canadian dollars (US$48.19 billion), Statistics Canada said Tuesday. The consensus call was for a tepid 0.2% increase, according to a report from Royal Bank of Canada. March's gain was revised down to 0.3% from 0.4%.

The figures are seasonally adjusted.

Sales volume in April rose 1.3%, the most since July 2011, suggesting that wholesale trade will be a key contributor to monthly gross domestic product figures due at the end of the month.

Wholesalers in the agricultural supplies industry reported a 48.5% jump in sales, which coincided with a 51.8% surge in exports of fertilizers and fertilizer materials. As a result sales in the miscellaneous sector, which includes agricultural supplies, were up 12.8%.

Excluding agricultural supplies, overall wholesale sales were unchanged, StatsCan said.

Wholesalers of machinery, equipment and supplies reported a 1.1% increase, while sales in the building materials and supplies sector were up 0.5%. Wholesalers of motor vehicles and parts posted a 0.2% rise, the third consecutive gain.

The four sectors that posted gains accounted for some two-thirds of total wholesale sales.

The largest decline was in the personal and household goods sector which saw a 2.2% drop, dragged by lower sales in the pharmaceuticals and pharmacy supplies industry.

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Canada April Wholesale Sales Up 1.5%, Most Since May 2011