Quarterly Retail Commodity Survey, first quarter 2013
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Released: 2013-07-12
Retail sales were flat in the first quarter compared with the first quarter of 2012, the smallest change since the third quarter of 2009. Higher sales were reported in 5 of 10 major commodity groups.
In the first quarter, food and beverages receipts rose 2.2% from the first quarter of 2012. The top contributors to the increase were sales of fresh fruits and vegetables (+6.6%) and alcoholic beverages (+3.4%).
Automotive fuels, oils and additives sales grew 2.1% in the first quarter compared with the first quarter of 2012. The majority of the increase was driven by a 2.2% rise in automotive fuels sales. These sales have been posting single-digit growth since the beginning of 2012, following two years of double-digit growth.
Furniture, home furnishings and electronics sales declined 3.5% in the first quarter compared with the first quarter of 2012. The largest contributor to this decrease was sales of home electronics, computers and cameras (-7.3%), which have declined in the last five quarters. Home furnishings sales decreased 2.5%, the largest drop since the second quarter of 2011.
In the first quarter, sales of motor vehicles, parts and services fell 1.7% from the first quarter of 2012. Sales of new automotive vehicles were down 1.8%, due to lower unit sales as reflected in data from the New Motor Vehicle Sales Survey. New passenger car sales (-7.7%) were down for the first time since the third quarter of 2011, while the 1.5% decrease in sales of used automotive vehicles brought an end to seven consecutive quarters of positive growth.
Clothing, footwear and accessories receipts fell 1.7% in the first quarter compared with the first quarter of 2012. The majority of the decline came from sales of clothing and accessories (-2.1%), led by women's clothing and accessories (-2.8%).
Note to readers
The Retail Commodity Survey collects national level retail sales by commodity, from a sub-sample of businesses in the Monthly Retail Trade Survey.
Quarterly data have not been adjusted for seasonality. For example, no adjustment has been made for Easter, which occurred in the first quarter of 2013 but had taken place in the second quarter of 2012. All percentage changes are year over year.
With this release, retail commodity data are based on the 2012 North American Industry Classification System. Unadjusted data were revised back to the first quarter of 2004. The revisions take into account the late reporting or correction of respondent information and classification changes. The revised data are now available on CANSIM.
Contact information
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