December 2020 year-to-date retail trade was down by -1.0% over the same period in 2019.  

• Sub-sectors that posted increases were: Electronics and appliance stores (4.1%), Building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers (11.2%), Health and personal care stores (9.8%), Grocery stores (7.8%), Beer, wine and liquor stores (15.7%), General merchandise stores (4.3%), and All other (6.8%). 
• Sub-sectors that posted declines were: New car dealers (-7.7%), Used car dealers (-19.4%), Gasoline stations (-18.0%), Furniture and home furnishings stores (-0.9%), Clothing and clothing accessories stores (-21.8%), and Sporting goods, hobby, book and music stores (-7.4%).

December 2020 year-to-date new motor vehicle (units) sales were down -14.1% from December 2019. New minivans, sport-utility vehicles, light and heavy trucks, vans and buses sales were down -11.5%, while new passenger cars sales were also down -32.4%.

December 2020 year-to-date restaurant receipts were down -17.8% over the same period in 2019. Declines occurred across all categories: Special food services (-33.0%), Drinking places (alcoholic beverages) (-40.5%), Full-service restaurants (-35.5%) and Limited-service eating places (-4.5%).

December 2020 year-to-date manufacturing sales were down by -14.0% over the same period in 2019.

• Sub-sectors that posted increases were: Machinery manufacturing sales (8.7%).
• Sub-sectors that posted decreases were: Food manufacturing sales (-11.6%), Fabricated metal product manufacturing sales (-3.3%), and All other Manufacturing sales (-19.6%).

December 2020 year-to-date wholesale trade was up 3.0% over the same period in 2019.

• Sub-sectors that posted increases were: Farm product merchant wholesalers (5.3%), Food, beverage and tobacco merchant wholesalers (16.1%), Machinery, equipment and supplies merchant wholesalers (1.1%), and All other (4.2%).
• Sub-sectors that posted declines were: Building material and supplies merchant wholesalers (-5.9%).

Total International merchandise exports were up 14.6% year-to-date January 2021 over January 2020.

• Sub-sectors that posted increases were: Farm, fishing and intermediate food products (36.1%), Metal ores and non-metallic minerals (1.6%), Metal and non-metallic mineral products (208.7%), Forestry products and building and packaging materials (70.3%), Industrial machinery, equipment and parts (19.9%), Motor vehicles and parts (13.5%), and Consumer goods (60.7%).
• Sub-sectors that posted decreases were: Energy products (-19.8%), Basic and industrial chemical, plastic and rubber products (-51.7%), Electronic and electrical equipment and parts (-34.6%), Aircraft and other transportation equipment and parts (-51.5%), and Special transactions (-14.5%).

Despite  robust residential construction data, year-to-date February 2021 construction employment was down -650 positions or -1.7% from the same period in 2020.

Driven by low inventories, low interest rates, record savings levels, and a loosening of mortgage restrictions, total year-to-date housing starts in February 2021 were up by 166 units or 44.6% over the same period in 2020.

• Year-to-date increases were observed in: singles (47 units or 39.5%), semi-detached (26 units or 650.0%), and apartment and other types (97 units or 48.5%).
• Year-to-date declines were confined to row (-4 units or -8.2%).

January 2021 year-to-date building permits were down -9.2% over the same period in 2020.

• Sub-sectors that posted increases were: residential (25.4%) and institutional and governmental (262.2%).
• Sub-sectors that posted declines were: industrial (-87.3%) and commercial (-27.8%).

February 2021 year-to-date employment in Information, culture and recreation was down -8,700 positions or -40.0% over the same period in 2020.

December 2020 year-to-date average weekly earnings in Information and cultural industries was up 3.9%.

Q1 2021 Provincial population was down 0.03% (or 322 persons) over 2020 Q1 to 1,178,832. Contributing to this decline was the pandemic-related drop in international in-migration. Net inter-provincial migration has been negative every quarter since Q2 2013.

In 3 rapid rate cuts on March 4th, March 13th, and March 27th, the Bank of Canada cut its benchmark interest rate to 0.25%.

The Bank of Canada will likely keep its benchmark rate near zero in the medium term to spur post pandemic economic activity. In its March 2021 rate announcement, the Bank of Canada reiterated that it has no plans to raise its rate for another two years.

According to the Conference Board of Canada, in its March 2021 forecast, the Saskatchewan outlook for 2021 is for 4.9% growth in real GDP after a 5.1% decline in 2020. Employment in the province is expected to rebound 4.7% in 2021 after a 4.3% decline in 2020. Meeting forecast targets is predicated on vaccine rollouts outpacing the spread of virus variants.