(Adds details from report, background)
OTTAWA, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Canadian retail sales fell 2.2
percent in December as unseasonably warm weather cut into
seasonal purchases, Statistics Canada said on Friday.
The month-on-month fall far exceeded the 0.6 percent drop
predicted by analysts in a Reuters poll and was the largest such
decline since April 2010. Sales in November jumped 1.7 percent
from October.
Statscan reported lower sales in 10 of 11 subsectors
representing 97 percent of retail trade. Volumes were down 2.3
percent.
Motor vehicles and parts dealers, a category that also
includes sellers of snowmobiles, posted a 3.9 percent decrease
in December. Sales in food and beverage stores fell by 1.2
percent.
"Store types typically associated with holiday shopping
registered weaker sales in December," Statscan said. Receipts at
general merchandise stores dropped by 2.2 percent, while sales
at clothing and clothing accessories stores fell by 3.6 percent.
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Canada economic dashboard graphic http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/15/sc-canada/index.html
Canada retail sales graphic http://link.reuters.com/huc72w
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