Saskatchewan consumers were showing some upbeat tendencies early in the year as we opened our wallets in local shops.
The monthly retail sales figures are one of the prime indicators are consumer sentiment or consumer confidence which represents a large portion of how the overall economy is chugging along. And February was a good month for retailers here.
Sales or total receipts rose 1.7 per cent compared to January. That was the second-highest increase in the nation behind Newfoundland but substantially better than the negative 0.1 per cent figure for the total country. That concluded a 12-month run which saw sales in Saskatchewan grow four per cent, outpacing inflation in the province. Again, that was second-best in the country behind Newfoundland and more than three times the national improvement.
Nationally, the industry that seems most subject to volatility – going up sharply one month and down the next – is the automotive sector which has to deal with quickly changing gasoline prices which are impacted by politics as various provincial governments suspend or reintroduce gasoline taxes.
