Retail trade, May 2025

Retail sales decreased 1.1% to $69.2 billion in May. Sales were down in three of nine subsectors and were led by decreases at motor vehicle and parts dealers.

Core retail sales—which exclude gasoline stations and fuel vendors and motor vehicle and parts dealers—were relatively unchanged in May.

In volume terms, retail sales decreased 1.4% in May.

Chart 1: Retail sales decrease in May

Impact of Canada–US trade tensions

Feedback from respondents for May highlighted the effects of trade tensions between Canada and the United States on Canadian retail businesses. Supplementary questions asked to respondents show that 32% of retail businesses were impacted by the trade tensions in May, compared with 36% in April. The most common impacts in May were price increases, change in demand for product and increased expenses for raw materials, shipping or labour.

Sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers and gasoline stations and fuel vendors fall

Following gains in each of the previous two months, motor vehicle and parts dealers (-3.6%) recorded the largest decrease in retail sales in May. The decrease was led by lower sales at new car dealers (-4.6%), which fell for the first time since February. The largest increase in the motor vehicle and parts dealers subsector in May came from automotive parts, accessories and tire retailers (+1.7%).

Sales at gasoline stations and fuel vendors (-1.4%) decreased in May for a third consecutive month. In volume terms, sales at gasoline stations and fuel vendors fell 2.1%.

Core retail sales unchanged in May

Core retail sales were relatively unchanged in May for a second consecutive month. The only subsector within core retail sales to post a decline was food and beverage retailers (-1.2%), which fell for the third month in a row. The decrease in this subsector was led by lower sales at beer, wine and liquor retailers (-2.9%), followed by supermarkets and other grocery retailers (-0.6%).

The largest increase to core retail sales in May came from building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers (+1.9%), which followed a decline of 0.3% in April.

Sales were also up at health and personal care retailers (+0.7%) in May. This was the 11th consecutive month of gains in the subsector.

Chart 2: Sales decrease in three of nine subsectors in May

Sales down in nine provinces

Retail sales decreased in nine provinces in May. The largest provincial decrease in dollar terms was observed in Ontario (-2.1%) on lower sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers. In the census metropolitan area of Toronto, retail sales were down 2.8% in the month.

In Alberta, retail sales decreased 1.0% in May, led by lower sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers.

The only provincial increase in May was observed in Nova Scotia (+0.3%). This increase was led by higher sales at building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers.

Retail e-commerce sales in Canada

On a seasonally adjusted basis, retail e-commerce sales decreased 1.7% to $4.3 billion in May, accounting for 6.2% of total retail trade, compared with 6.3% in April.

Advance retail indicator

Statistics Canada is providing an advance estimate of retail sales, which suggests that sales increased 1.6% in June. Owing to its early nature, this figure will be revised. This unofficial estimate was calculated based on responses received from 52.7% of companies surveyed. The average final response rate for the survey over the previous 12 months was 90.4%.

Table 1: Retail sales, by province, territory and census metropolitan area — Seasonally adjusted

Table 2: Retail sales, by industry — Seasonally adjusted

Table 3: Retail sales at 2017 constant prices, by industry — Seasonally adjusted