Statistics Canada, released just moments ago, showed a decline in retail sales in Canada by 1.4% to $65.3 billion in March, after declining by 0.2% in February, as sales declined in 5 of nine sub-sectors representing 55.5% of retail trade.

Underlying sales, which exclude petrol stations and trade in cars and spare parts, declined by 0.3% in March, compared to a decline of about 0.7% in February.

The decline in sales in the auto sector led by 4.4% for the first time in eight months, and the decline in sales at petrol stations and fuel sellers by 3.9% led to the losses of retail sales in March, while the largest decline in the main index came from the retail trade of clothing, accessories and shoes, by 1.2%.