Regional Indicator 4: Retail Sales

	Why It's Important Retail sales constitute a significant proportion of GDP and are used as a measure of economic performance. Retail trade is one of BC's largest sources of employment. In 2007, 283,100 people were employed in BC's retail trade.

Performance Indicator Four measures sales at retail outlets. Direct sales which bypass the retail store such as vending machine sales and door-to-door printed materials sold directly by a publisher are excluded; sales taxes and non-operating revenue are also excluded.

Real per capita retail sales were $10,290 in Vancouver and $13,542 in Victoria, Abbotsford, Kelowna and Regional BC combined in 2007.

Sales in Vancouver were $500 higher in 2007 than in 1998. This 4.9 percent growth rate is well below the 40.2 percent recorded in areas outside Vancouver.

Sales fell in five of the last ten years in Vancouver to produce an annual average growth rate of 0.2 percent. Outside of Vancouver, only 1998 saw a drop in sales which resulted in an average growth rate of 3.2 percent.