Wholesale sector humming

Saskatchewan’s wholesale sector has been somewhat immune from the Covid-19 pandemic.

When the monthly figures for June were released by StatsCan they noted that Saskatchewan was something special. The pandemic lockdown really had no impact on that sector.

Saskatchewan was the only province where sales in February – before the pandemic was declared – were the low point for this business category so far this year and by June it was $80 million ahead of the pre-lockdown levels.

In June, Saskatchewan was one of four provinces that exceeded the February sales level – two on the prairies and two in the Maritimes.

One of the factors in Saskatchewan’s performance is agriculture. The pandemic coincided with preparation for spring seeding, meaning wholesale volumes were strong.

By June, this segment was posting sales that were more than 20 per cent ahead of the same time a year ago. Only wholesale revenues for beverages (including alcohol) and cannabis showed stronger gains than spending by farmers.