Retail sales in Saskatchewan in January rose two per cent. Nationally, the average was a decline of 1.1 per cent from the month before. Surprisingly, seven provinces had a bigger increase than ours. The national average was dragged down by a 9.8 per cent drop in Quebec, with Montreal alone dropping nearly 12 per cent, and a drop of nearly three per cent in Ontario.
Compared to the same month the year before, sales in Saskatchewan were up 4.8 per cent, with the national average up 1.3 per cent. Seven provinces out-performed us again but there was a six per cent drop in Quebec and a four per cent drop in Ontario. Total sales in Saskatchewan were $1.725 billion.

Statistics Canada says on an unadjusted basis, retail e-commerce sales were up 110.7% year over year to $3.5 billion in January, accounting for 7.8% of total retail trade. The continued rise in e-commerce sales coincided with an increase in store closures in January.