Retail sales rise in January

OTTAWA — Retail sales in January at building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers, coming in at just over $2.8 billion, saw no change from the previous month but represented a 5.4% increase from the same time last year. StatCan reported that retail sales rose 2.2% to $46 billion in January, led by four sub-sectors that rebounded from lower sales in December. Excluding sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers, retail sales advanced 1.7%. The increases affected all provinces for the month.