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June 15, 2026WHOLESALE TRADE, APRIL 2026 Monthly (April 2026 vs March 2026, seasonally adjusted)
Nova Scotia wholesale trade increased by 3.9% from March to April, the fastest gain among provinces and rising to $1.32 billion. National wholesale trade rose 0.6% to $89.31 billion. Five provinces reported monthly growth in April, with Newfoundland and Labrador reporting the fastest decline.
Year-over-year (April 2026 vs April 2025, seasonally adjusted)
Nova Scotia wholesale trade increased 6.3% in April when compared with the same month last year. Canada's wholesale trade grew 6.3% year-over-year. Seven provinces reported year-over-year increases in wholesale trade led by Saskatchewan, while New Brunswick reported the largest decline.
Year-to-date (January-April 2026 vs January-April 2025, seasonally adjusted)
Nova Scotia's wholesale trade grew 1.4% in the first four months of 2026. National wholesale trade was up 2.9% in January-April 2026, with growth in seven provinces. Saskatchewan reported the strongest growth while New Brunswick reported the steepest decline, year-to-date.
Food and beverage wholesale represents the largest share of Nova Scotia's reported wholesale trade categories, followed by building materials.
Miscellaneous wholesalers and motor vehicle and parts saw the largest year-to-date percentage increase in wholesale trade, while building materials and food/beverage wholesale merchant sales were down.
Trends
Through much of 2025 and into 2026, Nova Scotia's wholesale trade has outpaced the national average.
National wholesale inventories as a share of sales increased in 2025. In April 2026, the inventory-to-sales ratio increased to 1.57.
Note: wholesale trade data excludes petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons as well as oilseed and grain.
Source: Statistics Canada. Table 20-10-0074-01 Wholesale trade, sales (x 1,000); Table 20-10-0076-01 Wholesale trade, inventories (x 1,000)
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