Canadian Clothing, Shoes And Other Retail Sales Grew In March, Driving Consumption Index.

Canada's Statistics retail sales totaled 39 billion 100 million Canadian dollars in March (May 23rd), up 0.4% from the same period last year, making up for the fall in February, according to the May 23rd Canada.

The statistics bureau also said that because of the warm weather, consumers were encouraged to buy goods in season.

Shoes, bicycles and gardening supplies increased in 7 out of 11 retail categories, accounting for 56% of total sales in Canada.

But the main driving force for growth in retail sales still depends on the growth of car sales. In March, sales of motor vehicles and spare parts increased by 1.2%. Most of the sales were sold by new cars and other motor vehicles, including recreational vehicles, motorcycles and motorboats.

Economic experts from Royal Bank of Canada pointed out that the Canadian Statistics Bureau showed that domestic consumer spending increased by 1.6% in the first quarter, which was significantly lower than the 2.9% in the fourth quarter of last year. It also confirmed his prediction, but thought that this trend should be temporary. Because of the positive signs of low interest rate and employment improvement, it is expected that the consumer spending in other quarters of this year will increase by more than 2%.