Wholesale trade, May 2022

Released: 2022-07-15

Wholesale sales rise in May

Wholesale sales rose 1.6% in May to $81.1 billion, the eighth increase in the past ten months. Sales increased in five of the seven wholesale trade subsectors, representing 70% of wholesale sales. The growth was predominantly due to higher sales in the food, beverage and tobacco subsector and the machinery, equipment and supplies subsector.

Constant dollar sales rose 1.1% in May.

Chart 1 
Wholesale sales increase in May

Sales of food, beverage and tobacco lead May increase

Sales in the food, beverage and tobacco subsector increased 7.8% to $14.7 billion in May, the fourth increase in the last five months. This is the highest level recorded for the subsector. All four component industries posted gains for the month, but the food industry led the gains, increasing 8.7% to $13.2 billion. The growth was driven by volumes as constant dollar sales in the subsector rose 8.4% in May.

The machinery, equipment and supplies subsector posted the second highest gains for May as sales rose 3.2% to $17.0 billion. This was the eighth month-over-month increase in the past nine months. Higher sales in two of the four industries produced the gains for the month. The farm, lawn and garden machinery and equipment industry increased 17.2% to $2.3 billion, and the computer and communications equipment and supplies industry was up 6.5% to $5.4 billion.

Sales of building material and supplies continued to fall for a second consecutive month in May, down 4.3% to $13.2 billion—the third decline in 2022. An 8.2% drop in sales of the lumber, millwork, hardware and other building supplies industry accounted for nearly all of the decrease in the subsector. Compared with May 2021, sales in this industry were 15.3% lower, reflecting a drop in the price of lumber and other sawmill products.

Ontario leads provincial gains

Higher sales were reported in seven provinces and two territories in May, accounting for 89% of the national value, with Ontario gaining the most.

In Ontario, sales grew 1.8% to $40.9 billion in May, with higher sales in four of seven subsectors. Higher sales were led by the food, beverage, and tobacco subsector, up 8.8% to $6.7 billion, predominantly due to gains in the food industry. Also contributing to the gains in Ontario was the miscellaneous subsector, up 5.3%, and the 1.5% increase in the machinery equipment and supplies subsector. Sales of building material and supplies fell for the second consecutive month, and were down 4.3% in May to $5.2 billion on falling lumber prices.

Sales in Quebec increased by 1.5% to $15.0 billion, with four of seven subsectors showing an increase in sales. The food, beverage and tobacco subsector also led the gains in Quebec, with an increase of 13.2% to $3.3 billion. Sales in all component industries rose, with the majority of the gains seen in the food industry, up 13.8%.

Sales in Saskatchewan rose by 4.0% to $3.6 billion, with higher sales in five of seven subsectors. The machinery, equipment and supplies subsector led the gains with a 19.0% increase to $0.9 billion. Most of the gains in this subsector were attributable to the agriculture sector, with the farm, lawn and garden machinery and equipment industry up 25.7%, and the farm products subsector up 19.8%.

Inventories rise in May

Wholesale inventories increased 2.5% to $115.2 billion in May, the fourth consecutive month of growth, and the second consecutive month in which all subsectors recorded higher inventories. The largest contributor to the inventory growth was the miscellaneous subsector, followed by the machinery, equipment and supplies subsector, and the building material and supplies subsector.

The miscellaneous subsector saw inventories increase for the fourth consecutive month in May, up 4.2% to $17.0 billion. Agricultural supplies merchant wholesalers were the highest contributing industry, up 9.0% to $7.9 billion, accounting for 81% of the increase. The only industry within the miscellaneous subsector to have lower inventories was the recyclable material industry, which decreased 7.7%.

Inventories of machinery, equipment and supplies rose 2.0% to $31.1 billion. Accounting for half of this increase was the farm, lawn and garden machinery and equipment industry, which rose 5.1% to $6.3 billion. The increase coincided with an 8.3% increase in imports of agriculture, lawn and garden machinery in May.

Inventories of the building material and supplies subsector increased 2.5% in May to $22.0 billion. May was the second consecutive month in which all industries within the subsector reported higher inventories. The most significant contributor was the metal service centres industry, which saw inventories increase 6.0%, representing 65% of the subsector's growth.

The inventory-to-sales ratio increased from 1.41 in April to 1.42 in May. This ratio is a measure of the time (in months) required to exhaust inventories if sales were to remain at their current levels.

Products

The product "Monthly Wholesale Trade Survey: Interactive Tool" (Catalogue number71-607-X) is available online. This product is based on the data published in the tables of the Monthly Wholesale Trade Survey: 20-10-0074-01, 20-10-0076-01 and 20-10-0003-01.

Contact information

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