(Ottawa) Wholesale sales rose 0.4% to $82.7 billion in July, according to Statistics Canada.
The increase was driven by higher sales in the miscellaneous products subsector, which rose 3% to $10.5 billion in July, driven by strength in the agricultural supplies group, which rose 9.2%.
The food, beverages and tobacco subsector increased by 1.7% to reach 15 billion in July.
The personal and household goods subsector fell 2.5% to $12.1 billion.
In terms of volume, wholesale sales increased by 0.5% in July.
Statistics Canada excludes petroleum, petroleum products and other hydrocarbons as well as oilseeds and grains from its analysis of wholesale sales.
The agency began including them in wholesale trade last year, but is excluding their data from monthly analysis until there is sufficient historical data.