Annual wholesale trade, 2023

The total operating revenue of Canadian wholesalers declined 4.3% from $1,587.5 billion in 2022 to $1,519.0 billion in 2023. Total operating revenue declined in five of the nine subsectors, with the largest decline coming from the petroleum and petroleum products subsector.

Along with the decline in total operating revenue, the cost of goods sold, which represents the cost of acquiring goods for resale, fell 4.5% to $1,277.6 billion in 2023.

As a result, gross margins for wholesalers (the difference between total operating revenue and the cost of goods sold, expressed as a percentage of total operating revenue) increased from 15.7% in 2022 to 15.9% in 2023.

Total operating expenses, which include labour remuneration, were up 5.6% to $171.5 billion in 2023.

Overall, the operating profits of wholesalers as a percentage of total operating revenue decreased from 5.5% in 2022 to 4.6% in 2023.

Lower total operating revenue in petroleum

The largest decrease in total operating revenue was observed in the petroleum and petroleum products subsector, down 18.8% to $401.4 billion in 2023. Revenue, expenses, and costs of goods sold were down in this subsector.

The decline in total operating revenue in 2023 was moderated by an increase in the motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and accessories subsector (+16.8% to $187.1 billion). This increase was mainly due to the continued growth of imports of motor vehicle parts and of higher imports of passenger cars and light trucks.

Excluding the petroleum and petroleum products subsector, the total operating revenue for wholesalers in Canada increased by 2.2% in 2023.

Gross margins increase

Expressed as a percentage of total operating revenue, wholesale gross margins increased from 15.7% in 2022 to 15.9% in 2023. This was due in part to increased gross margins in the building material and supplies (from 23.0% to 23.9%) and the machinery, equipment and supplies (from 26.3% to 27.5%) subsectors.

In 2023, gross margins varied widely among subsectors, depending on the cost structure of the different types of wholesalers. Among wholesale merchants, the highest gross margin was in the machinery, equipment and supplies subsector (27.5%), followed by the personal and household goods subsector (25.1%) and the building material and supplies subsector (23.9%). In the petroleum and petroleum products subsector, gross margins decreased from 4.5% in 2022 to 2.4% in 2023.

Wholesale revenue down in eight provinces

In 2023, wholesalers in eight provinces and one territory reported having lower total operating revenue compared with 2022. Overall, total operating revenue in Canada fell $68.5 billion to reach $1,519.0 billion in 2023.

Declines were led by Alberta (-13.6%), British Columbia (-8.5%) and Quebec (-1.6%). These provinces saw their share of wholesale total operating revenues decrease by a combined $84.2 billion to reach $782.6 billion in 2023, representing 51.5% of the total operating revenue for wholesalers in Canada.

In Alberta, total operating revenue fell by 13.6% to $438.9 billion in 2023, after a substantial increase of 35.9% in 2022. The decrease was mainly attributable to the petroleum and petroleum products subsector, which fell 17.8% to $318.6 billion in 2023. This subsector accounted for 72.6% of wholesalers' total operating revenue in this province.

British Columbia experienced the second-largest decline in total operating revenue, falling 8.5% to $125.1 billion in 2023. The decrease was mainly attributable to the petroleum and petroleum products subsector (-25.9% to $24.5 billion) and the building material and supplies subsector (-14.3% to $24.5 billion). The two subsectors accounted for 39.2% of wholesalers' total operating revenue in this province.

The third-largest decline was recorded in Quebec, down from $222.2 billion in 2022 to $218.6 billion in 2023. As in British Columbia, the decrease was mainly attributable to the petroleum and petroleum products subsector (-10.9% to $25.8 billion) and the building material and supplies subsector (-10.3% to $27.6 billion), which together accounted for 24.4% of wholesalers' total operating revenue in Quebec.

Overall, wholesale total operating revenue in 2023 was moderated by an increase in Ontario (+3.0% to $591.5 billion), which remained the highest among all provinces. In dollar terms, among the subsectors in Ontario, the largest increase was in the motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and accessories subsector, which rose from $115.2 billion in 2022 to $138.6 billion in 2023. The provincial wholesale total operating revenue was partially offset by a decline in sales in the petroleum and petroleum products subsector (-40.4% to $15.8 billion).

Wholesale trade commodities

Wholesalers across Canada buy and sell a wide variety of commodities, ranging from petroleum products, motor vehicles, pharmaceuticals, wood products and clothing to a vast selection of food products.

The Annual Wholesale Trade Survey measures the sales and costs of goods sold for these and other products, classifying them according to the North American Product Classification System.

The top five commodity subclasses accounted for 79.2% of all sales in 2023, down from 79.9% in 2022. These commodity subclasses cover a wide variety of goods distributed by Canadian wholesalers, from non-durable goods such as petroleum, food and pharmaceuticals to durable goods such as motor vehicles and farm equipment.

In 2023, the largest commodity subclass in dollar terms was petroleum and petroleum products, representing a 26.5% share of total wholesale sales, down from 32.2% in 2022. Sales in this subclass fell by 22.1% from 2022 to 2023.