Economy gathers strength

Photo: Contributed

Signs of strength in the Canadian economy continued to gather momentum as retail sales for January came in better than expected.

Statistics Canada says retail sales climbed 2.2 per cent to $46.0 billion in January after declining in December.

Economists had expected a gain of 1.1 per cent, according to Thomson Reuters.

The data follows recent stronger-than-expected results for wholesale and manufacturing sales, trade and job creation.

Retail sales in January were up in 10 of 11 subsectors, led by motor vehicle and parts dealers, which gained 3.8 per cent. Sporting goods, hobby, books and music stores fell 0.1 per cent.

Excluding sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers, overall retail sales gained 1.7 per cent in January.