Wholesale trade, May 2026

Released: 2026-07-15

Wholesale sales essentially unchanged in May

Wholesale sales (excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain) were essentially unchanged (-0.0%), with sales sitting at $90.0 billion in May, after rising 1.4% in April. In May, sales decreased in four of the seven subsectors, representing 68.0% of total wholesale sales. The largest decreases came from the food, beverage and tobacco subsector (-1.5% to $16.0 billion) and the personal and household goods subsector (-0.6% to $13.1 billion). The declines were partly offset by stronger sales in the non-agricultural chemical and allied product industry group (+14.2% to $2.2 billion).

Wholesale sales were 7.4% higher in May compared with the same month one year earlier.

In volume terms, wholesale sales (excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain) declined 0.2% in May.

Chart 1 
Wholesale sales (excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and oilseed and grain) essentially unchanged in May

Declines in food and household goods

Sales in the food, beverage and tobacco subsector declined 1.5% to $16.0 billion in May. The decrease was driven by the food industry group (-1.5% to $14.2 billion), reflecting lower volumes of goods sold. Sales in the food industry group were 5.2% higher compared with the same month one year earlier.

The personal and household goods subsector also posted a decrease in May, with sales shrinking 0.6% to $13.1 billion. The pharmaceuticals industry (-3.1% to $7.5 billion) recorded the largest drop in sales and its second decrease in three months.

The decrease in wholesale sales in May was moderated by an increase in the non-agricultural chemical and allied product industry group (+14.2% to $2.2 billion), which generated an overall increase in the miscellaneous subsector (+2.2% to $11.9 billion).

Quebec and British Columbia lead provincial declines

In May, eight provinces recorded lower sales, led by Quebec and British Columbia.

The lower sales in Quebec (-1.8% to $15.7 billion) in May were the result of a drop in three of the seven subsectors. The food, beverage and tobacco subsector (-6.7% to $3.3 billion) drove the decrease.

British Columbia (-2.6% to $8.2 billion) posted the second-largest decrease in provincial wholesale sales in May. Sales decreased in six of the seven subsectors, with the building material and supplies subsector (-9.0% to $1.9 billion) reporting the largest decrease.

Wholesale inventories decrease

Wholesale inventories (excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and oilseed and grain) were down 1.1% to $137.7 billion in May.

Inventories decreased in five subsectors in May. The largest decrease occurred in the machinery, equipment and supplies subsector (-2.1% to $40.7 billion), followed by the personal and household goods subsector (-1.5% to $23.1 billion).

The inventory-to-sales ratio decreased from 1.55 to 1.53 in May. This ratio measures the time in months required to exhaust inventories if sales remain at current levels.

Contact information

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).