Wholesale trade, January 2025

Released: 2025-03-14

Wholesale sales (excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain) rose 1.2% to $85.1 billion in January. Sales increased in five of the seven subsectors, representing 77.6% of total wholesale sales. The largest increases came from the motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and accessories subsector (+3.7%) and the building material and supplies subsector (+3.5%). Wholesale sales were 2.7% higher in January compared with the same month one year earlier.

In volume terms, wholesale sales (excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain) increased 0.8% in January.

Chart 1 
Wholesale sales (excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and oilseed and grain) increase in January

Motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and accessories lead sales increases in January

For a second consecutive month, sales in the motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and accessories subsector showed an increase, rising 3.7% to $14.9 billion in January. The increase was driven by sales in the motor vehicle industry group (+3.1% to $12.0 billion).

The building material and supplies subsector posted the second-largest increase in January, with sales up 3.5% to $12.4 billion. The lumber, millwork, hardware and other building supplies industry group (+5.5% to $6.2 billion) drove the increase.

The increase in wholesale sales in January was tempered by a decline in the machinery, equipment and supplies subsector (-1.2% to $17.5 billion).

British Columbia leads provincial sales increase

In January, all provinces recorded an increase in wholesale sales, with British Columbia (+5.4%) leading the way, followed by Quebec (+1.3%).

British Columbia posted an increase of 5.4% to $8.6 billion in January. Gains were observed in four of the seven subsectors, with the building material and supplies subsector (+10.5% to $2.3 billion) posting the largest increase, followed by the food, beverage, and tobacco subsector (+11.5% to $1.8 billion).

Quebec saw the second-largest increase in provincial wholesale sales, rising 1.3% to $15.4 billion in January. Sales increased in five of the seven subsectors.

Ontario posted a modest increase of 0.3%, bringing wholesale sales to $43.6 billion in January. While six of the seven subsectors experienced a decrease in Ontario, the motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and accessories subsector increased 5.4% to $10.2 billion, leading to the overall increase in the province's wholesale sales.

Inventories fall in January

Wholesale inventories (excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain) were down 0.1% to $127.7 billion in January.

Inventory decreases were recorded in two of the seven subsectors in January. The largest decrease came from the machinery, equipment and supplies subsector (-0.8% to $38.2 billion), which recorded its fourth decline in a row. Inventory declines were also recorded in the personal and household goods subsector (-1.1% to $21.2 billion).

Inventory gains in the motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and accessories (+1.4% to $17.5 billion) and the food, beverage and tobacco subsectors (+1.4% to $13.4 billion) moderated the decline in inventories in January.

The inventory-to-sales ratio decreased from 1.52 in December to 1.50 in January. This ratio is a measure of the time (in months) required to exhaust inventories if sales were to remain at their current levels.

Contact information

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