(Ottawa) Canadian wholesale sales rose 2.4% to 84.2 million in January, fueled by growth in the machinery, equipment and supplies subsector, as well as the food products subsector , beverages and tobacco, Statistics Canada said Thursday.

According to the federal agency, sales rose in six of the seven subsectors, accounting for 84% of wholesale trade.

Sales of machinery, equipment and supplies rose 3.2% to 17.7 billion in January, after falling sharply in December, while those of food, beverages and tobacco rose 3.6%. % to 15.7 billion, recording the second growth in as many months.

The motor vehicle and parts sales subsector was the only subsector to register a decline in January, falling 2.4% to $13.3 billion, which Statistics Canada attributed to an acceleration in sales in the last quarter of 2022, as well as the fact that companies have focused production on increasing sales of electric vehicles.

Expressed in constant dollars, wholesale sales rose 2% in January.

Last month, Statistics Canada reported that wholesale sales fell 0.8% to $82.2 billion in December.