Saskatchewan consumers are spending more than nearly anywhere else in Canada, with retail sales through the first half up 6 per cent from a year earlier - "the third-highest increase among provinces," reported Statistics Canada.
Nationally, retail sales were down 0.6 per cent in the same period.
In June alone, Saskatchewan retail sales hit $1.58 billion. The activity is reflected in the province's biggest retail market, Saskatoon, which has a near-Canada-leading 48 square feet of retail space for every person in the city.
Despite 200,000 more square feet of retail coming to Saskatoon in the past year, the retail vacancy rate has dropped to 2.24 per cent, according to industry surveys.
from Western Investor October 2013
