Retail sales across Canada continued their rise in October, edging up 0.8 per cent to reach $35.3 billion, the eighth such increase in 10 months, according to Statistics Canada.
Retail sales volume increased 0.6 per cent, a level not seen since before the sharp downturn at the end of 2008.
Much of the rise is attributed to strong gains in the automotive sector, which reported a three per cent rise in October, marking the sixth consecutive month sales rose at new car dealers. When the automotive sector is excluded from the numbers, retail sales actually decrease 0.2 per cent in October due strong declines in the food and beverage sector (-1.2 per cent) and the pharmacy and personal care sectors (-0.9 per cent).
Building and outdoor home supplies stores saw a 1.2 per cent rise in sales, led primarily by sales at home centres and hardware stores.
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