After dipping December by 2.4% ($181.1 million), seasonally-adjusted retail sales in Alberta jumped by 1.4% ($103.2 million) in January.

National retail sales growth was somewhat stronger at 3.2% with retail sector revenue in January up the most in Nova Scotia (7.0%). Saskatchewan was the only province to post lower sales (-0.3%).

Seasonally-adjusted data by retail subsector are not available at the provincial level, but Statistics Canada notes that the national “increase was led by higher sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers (+5.3%)” and that “sales were up in 9 of 11 subsectors, representing 85.5% of retail trade.”

Statistics Canada also points out that “retail e-commerce sales* were down 14.4% year over year to $3.2 billion in January, accounting for 6.3% of total retail trade. The share of e-commerce sales out of total retail sales fell 1.8 percentage points compared with January 2021, when retailers were mandated to close their brick and mortar stores to in-person shopping in many regions across the country.”

*Retail e-commerce includes sales made on-line by Canadian retailers, whether to domestic or foreign consumers. It does not include on-line purchases made by Canadian consumers from retailers located outside of Canada.

Answer to the previous trivia question: At about 800 residents, Vatican City has the smallest population of the independent countries recognized by the United Nations.

Today’s trivia question: Which U.S. newspaper claims one of the first uses of the term “retail therapy?”