Retail Services Price Index, third
quarter 2016
Released at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time in The Daily, Thursday, February 16, 2017
The Retail Services Price Index (RSPI) increased 0.7% in the third quarter, with 6 of the 10 major retail subsectors
posting margin gains.
Chart 1
Retail Services Price Index
index (2013=100)
107
106
105
104
103
102
101
100
99
98
97
96
III IV
2011
I
II III
2012
IV
I
II III
2013
IV
I
II III
2014
IV
I
II III
2015
IV
I
II III
2016
Source(s): CANSIM table 332-0025.
Margins at general merchandise stores rose 2.7%, in large part due to fewer promotions reported by retailers. This
competitive subsector includes department stores, warehouse clubs and all other general merchandise stores.
Higher margins were also reported at clothing and clothing accessories stores (+1.7%) and at gasoline stations
(+1.9%), where margins increased for the third consecutive quarter. These three subsectors were the largest
contributors to the increase in the RSPI.
Building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers saw margins edge up 0.9%, signalling a moderation
of growth from the previous quarter (+5.2%).
Electronics and appliances stores (+1.8%) reported higher margins for the sixth consecutive quarter, as retailers
launched new product updates later in the quarter.
Moderating the overall quarterly increase in the RSPI were margin declines at miscellaneous store retailers (-1.1%),
food and beverage stores (-0.8%) and sporting goods, hobby, book and music stores (-0.7%).
Year-over-year change
The RSPI increased 0.7% in the third quarter compared with the same quarter in 2015.
The Daily, Thursday, February 16, 2017
Building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers (+7.4%) recorded the largest year-over-year margin
gain, followed by electronics and appliance stores (+5.9%).
Margins were also up for clothing and clothing accessories stores (+1.8%), miscellaneous store retailers (+1.6%)
and food and beverage stores (+0.2%).
Lower margins at furniture and home furnishings stores (-5.0%), health and personal care stores (-3.6%) and
general merchandise stores (-0.4%) moderated the year-over-year rise of the RSPI.
The evolution of margins in the retail trade sector
As 2017 marks the 150th anniversary of Confederation, we take a look back at interesting trends in the retail trade
sector.
From the first quarter of 2008 to the third quarter of 2016, building material and garden equipment and supplies
dealers posted the largest growth in margins (+37.6%) among all retail subsectors. Retailers in this subsector have
experienced continued margin growth in the wake of higher residential investment in renovations by Canadians.
Retailers in the electronics and appliance stores subsector saw margins contract 17.0% over the same period.
Sustained competition and, more recently, exchange rate pressures, were cited as the main factors of change in
this subsector.
Chart 2
The evolution of margins in the retail trade sector
index (first quarter 2008=100)
140
130
120
110
100
90
80
70
I
2008
I
2010
I
2012
I
2014
I
2016
Retail Services Price Index
Building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers
Electronics and appliance stores
Source(s): CANSIM table 332-0025.
Note(s): The index series values have been rebased to the first quarter 2008=100 for the purposes of this chart. Small differences in percentage change may result
due to rebasing of index values.
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Component of Statistics Canada catalogue no. 11-001-X
The Daily, Thursday, February 16, 2017
Note to readers
With the release of fourth quarter 2015 data, the Retail Services Price Index (RSPI) was updated to increase its relevance. The RSPI
update included the selection of a new sample for 4 of 10 major retail subsectors, the adoption of the 2012 North American Industry
Classification System (NAICS) and updates to RSPI basket weights for all retail subsectors. The following retail subsectors were updated
with new samples:
1.
Furniture and home furnishings stores (NAICS 442)
2.
Electronics and appliance stores (NAICS 443)
3.
Sporting goods, hobby, book and music stores (NAICS 451)
4.
General merchandise stores (NAICS 452).
The RSPI series were also converted to 2013=100, with 2013 as the base year. The relative importance of the basket items was updated
using the 2013 annual gross margins from the Annual Retail Trade Survey (2447).
Two new CANSIM tables, 332-0024 (monthly) and 332-0025 (quarterly), based on 2013=100 and using new vectors, replaced CANSIM
tables 332-0003 and 332-0007, which were archived with the release of fourth quarter 2015 data. A concordance table of the old CANSIM
table vectors with the new CANSIM table vectors is available.
As a result of these updates, users should exercise caution when comparing index levels based on the new basket with index levels
based on the old basket.
The RSPI represents the change in the price of the retail service. The price of the retail service is defined as the margin price, which is
the difference between the average purchase price and the average selling price of the retail product being priced. The RSPI is not a
retail selling price index.
The indexes are not seasonally adjusted. Data are available at the Canada level only.
Infographic: Producer Price Indexes at a Glance
The infographic, "Producer Price Indexes at a Glance," which is part of Statistics Canada — Infographics (11-627-M), demonstrates how
producer price indexes for goods and services are calculated and why they are important for the Canadian economy.
Component of Statistics Canada catalogue no. 11-001-X
3
The Daily, Thursday, February 16, 2017
Table 1
Retail Services Price Index – Not seasonally adjusted
Relative
importance1
Third quarter
2015
%
Retail Services Price Index
Automotive parts, accessories and tire stores2
Furniture and home furnishings stores
Electronics and appliance stores
Building material and garden equipment and supplies
dealers
Food and beverage stores
Health and personal care stores
Gasoline stations
Clothing and clothing accessories stores
Sporting goods, hobby, book and music stores
General merchandise stores
Miscellaneous store retailers
Second quarter
2016r
Third quarter
2016p
(2013=100)
Second quarter
to third quarter
2016
Third quarter
2015 to third
quarter 2016
% change
100.00
1.92
5.02
3.80
105.3
102.0
105.6
98.2
105.3
107.9
100.1
102.2
106.0
109.3
100.3
104.0
0.7
1.3
0.2
1.8
0.7
7.2
-5.0
5.9
7.71
22.97
10.64
6.63
10.54
3.18
10.85
4.28
108.4
105.6
102.0
113.3
104.0
103.0
105.5
103.0
115.4
106.7
98.3
110.9
104.1
103.4
102.3
105.8
116.4
105.8
98.3
113.0
105.9
102.7
105.1
104.6
0.9
-0.8
0.0
1.9
1.7
-0.7
2.7
-1.1
7.4
0.2
-3.6
-0.3
1.8
-0.3
-0.4
1.6
r
p
revised
preliminary
1. The relative importance is calculated by dividing the weight of each component by the total weight. The weights correspond to the aggregate gross margins of
establishments at the time of sample selection, derived from the 2013 Annual Retail Trade Survey (2447). The total does not equal 100 as automobile dealers
(North American Industry Classification System [NAICS] code 4411), other motor vehicle dealers (NAICS code 4412) and non-store retailers (NAICS code 454)
were not surveyed.
2. For motor vehicle and parts dealers (NAICS 441), data are only available for automotive parts, accessories and tire stores (NAICS 4413) and the constituent
five-digit NAICS series. Automobile dealers (NAICS 4411) and other motor vehicle dealers (NAICS 4412) are not surveyed and, therefore, data are not available
at this time.
Source(s): CANSIM table 332-0025.
Available in CANSIM: tables 332-0024 and 332-0025.
Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 5135.
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us
(toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; [email protected]) or Media
Relations (613-951-4636; [email protected]).
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Component of Statistics Canada catalogue no. 11-001-X