(RTTNews) - Canadian wholesale sales surprisingly fell 1.4% to $41.0 billion in August, due in part to weaker automotive sales, official data showed Tuesday. Economists expected wholesale sales to rise 1% following a revised 2.6% increase in July.

Although sales in all seven wholesale sectors fell in August, Stats Canada pointed out that losses in three sectors accounted for close to 90% of the total decline.

The largest decrease came in the automotive products sector, which fell 3.3% in August. Following a 17.8% increase in July, sales of motor vehicles fell 4.7%, the first decline in seven months.

This drop coincides with the latest international merchandise trade data, which shows a decline in both Canadian imports and exports of passenger autos.

The machinery and electronic equipment sector declined 2.4% in August, with the machinery and equipment trade group accounting for all of the loss.

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