Canada: Retail Sales rise by 0.5% in December vs. 0.2% expected

• Retail Sales in Canada increased at a stronger pace than expected in December.
• USD/CAD pushes higher toward 1.3500 in the early American session.

Statistics Canada reported on Tuesday that Retail Sales rose by 0.5% on a monthly basis in December. This reading came in higher than the market expectation for an increase of 0.2%.

"Core retail sales—which exclude gasoline stations and motor vehicle and parts dealers—increased 0.4%," Statistics Canada noted in its publication. "In volume terms, retail sales increased 1.3% in December."

Market reaction

Despite the upbeat data, USD/CAD trades in positive territory and edges higher toward 1.3500 in the early American session. Soft inflation figures from Canada seem to be weighing on the Canadian Dollar.