Black Friday in Canada: Sales across Canadian retailers [Video]

Canadian shoppers have been visiting malls and logging onto retailer websites as Black Friday sweeps through the country.

Shopify Inc., an Ottawa-based company whose e-commerce software powers thousands of retail businesses, says by noon, the average cart in Canada totalled $220.63.Last year, Shopify calculated it was $172.80 by mid-day on Black Friday.

Top purchasing cities within the country this year included Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver and the most popular product categories were makeup, T-shirts, skincare, vitamins and men’s underwear. 

Data from tech firm Salesforce found the average discount being offered in Canada was about 21 per cent, down 11 per cent from last year, while the average U.S. markdown was unchanged at 28 per cent.

The Retail Council of Canada has said it expects the average Canadian shopper to spend $972 on holiday shopping, up $73 or eight per cent, from last year. 

It predicted 40 per cent of that spending would …