Source: The Canadian Press

Wholesale sales slipped 0.1% in May to $44.1 billion because of a sharp decline in the agricultural supplies industry, Statistics Canada reported Wednesday.

Sales were down 1.5% on a volume basis, partly because the Canadian dollar slipped against its American counterpart, the agency said.

“The substantial decrease in the volume of sales compared with the decline in the current dollar value of sales in May primarily reflects higher prices for the imported products sold by wholesalers,” the report noted.

“This was partly attributable to the depreciation of the Canadian dollar relative to the American dollar during the month.”

Sales rose in six of the seven subsectors surveyed, but poor weather in the West meant lower farm demand for fertilizer and seeds, which hurt agricultural sales.

The largest increases in dollar terms were in the machinery, equipment and supplies subsector, where sales rose 1.9% and the food, beverage and tobacco subsector, which was up 1.3%.

Sales were down in six provinces, with much of the downturn coming in the Prairie provinces.

Saskatchewan had the single steepest decline among the provinces, with sales off 12.3%. That was the biggest drop the province has seen since March 2005.

Sales were down 9.1% in Manitoba, its biggest drop in seven years. Alberta sales were off 0.7%.

In Ontario, sales rose 0.4% in May, the fourth increase this year. Quebec sales edged down 0.2%.

Wholesale trade inventories climbed 1.7% to $52.4 billion in May, the largest such increase since January 2007.

Overall, 16 of the 25 wholesale trade industries reported higher inventory levels.