Canada January retail sales data now out 23 March
- -0.7% prev revised up from -0.8%
- mm ex autos +0.9% vs +0.8% exp vs -1.7% prev rev up from -1.8%
- Ex autos and gas +0.9% m/m
- Furniture and home furnishings +3.4% m/m
- Electronics +4.0% m/m
- Food and beverage stores +0.2% m/m
- Building material -1.7%
USDCAD 1.2850 amongst the raft of data now out including Canadian CPI and US durable goods. The big surprise from CPI is sending it sharply lower.
Digging down into the numbers there are a few these. First, it's not as weak as the headline suggests. Autos were a drag, falling 1.2% and that skewed the headline. Inside the data, strong numbers on electronics and some bellwether categories point to a solid consumer while building materials and furniture send mixed signals on housing, which is an area of concern.
