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November 13, 2026WHOLESALE TRADE, SEPTEMBER 2026 Monthly (September 2026 vs August 2026, seasonally adjusted)
Nova Scotia wholesale trade decreased by 1.6% from August to September, falling to $1.35 billion. National wholesale trade increased 0.7% to $92.46 billion. Six provinces reported monthly increases in September, with Saskatchewan reporting the fastest growth and British Columbia the fastest decrease.
Year-over-year (September 2026 vs September 2025, seasonally adjusted)
Nova Scotia wholesale trade increased 3.1% in September when compared with the same month last year, the second slowest increase among provinces, just head of Québec. Canada's wholesale trade grew 7.8% year-over-year. All provinces reported year-over-year increases in wholesale trade led by Prince Edward Island.
Year-to-date (January-September 2026 vs January-September 2025, seasonally adjusted)
Nova Scotia's wholesale trade grew 4.9% in the first nine months of 2026. National wholesale trade was up 5.9% in January-September 2026, with growth in all provinces. Prince Edward Island reported the strongest growth while New Brunswick reported the slowest growth 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 vehicles and parts saw the fastest year-to-date percentage gains in wholesale trade, while building materials wholesale merchant sales were down.
Trends
Through much of 2025 and into 2026, Nova Scotia's wholesale trade growth has outpaced the national average.
National wholesale inventories as a share of sales increased in 2025 but have been on a downward trend in 2026. In September 2026, the inventory-to-sales ratio declined to 1.53.
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)