Investing.com - Retail sales in Canada weakened once again in February after a strong gain in the first month of the year, falling more than expected and dampening optimism over the Canadian economy, official data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, Statistics Canada said that Canadian, retail sales dropped by 0.6% in January, compared to forecasts for a 0.1% decline and after a 2.3% advance in the prior month, that was revised from an initial gain of 2.2%.
Core retail sales, excluding automobiles, decreased by 0.1% in February, after a 2.3% rise in the preceding month which was revised from an initial 1.7 % gain.
Analysts had expected Canadian core retail sales to drop 0.3% in February.
After the report, USD/CAD traded at 1.3579, compared to 1.3592 prior to the release.