Retail sales in Canada fell 1.9% in September due to supply chain bottlenecks and shipping delays.
The slump in September retail sales comes after a gain of 2.1% in August, which was slightly ahead of a 2% consensus estimate among economists.
The September pullback could signal retailers are struggling to meet strong demand because of global shipping constraints and the ongoing shortage of microchips that’s disrupting automotive and consumer electronics manufacturing.
The drop in retail sales may also suggest that consumers have less appetite for hard goods now that they’re free to spend on services that had been prohibited for months such as gym memberships and movie tickets.
For August, the 2.1% gain in retail sales was broad based, led by higher sales at food and beverage stores, gasoline stations and clothing retailers. Sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers were flat for the month.
Statistics Canada also revised its July data upward to show receipts fell 0.1% instead of the 0.6% contraction previously reported.
