Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to start by thanking the committee members for the invitation to come here today to talk about the positions and issues of the retail industry, the day after an important day in the parliamentary calendar. The tabling of a budget is usually one of the most significant events of the year in Parliament. We're very grateful for this invitation. It will also give us the opportunity to respond to the various parts of the budget in real time.
I've been the chief executive officer of the Conseil québécois du commerce de détail for four weeks. This is all new. I used to keep a close eye on the Canadian economy as a researcher and associate director at the Institut du Québec, which came into being as a result of a partnership between HEC Montréal and the Conference Board of Canada. Over the past few months, I've been able to keep track of the measures announced by the government and adopted by Parliament to resolve the economic issues surrounding the pandemic. As a result, I have fairly specific knowledge of the issues and the items tabled.
The Conseil québécois du commerce de détail represents thousands of retailers in Quebec. A number of these retailers are based in Quebec and have their head office in Quebec. However, some retailers are based in other parts of Canada and carry out many activities in Quebec. We share a significant number of challenges with other retailers across Canada. The Conseil also represents many small retailers, meaning people who have one or two stores, or one or two doors, as they say in the retail business. We're aware of the various challenges that retailers face, depending on their size, to ensure a proper return to business.
We're still in a crisis. The pandemic is ongoing and the lockdown is relatively challenging in other parts of Canada. In Quebec, some areas are more locked down than others. In some areas, certain retailers can't conduct business as usual because of the number of cases. The third wave is still very severe. The issues identified as of March 2020 are still ongoing. In the end, the programs in place are still just as relevant.
We can also see that the pandemic has affected industries in different ways. Health care and education have spearheaded the response to the pandemic. Tourism, hospitality, arts and culture, and retail suffered far more losses than other industries that were able to remain open and continue their economic activities. As a result, each industry's response to the pandemic and experiences during the crisis differed.
However, all our members are telling us something important: the pandemic comes on the heels of the completion of a major transformation in the retail industry. I'm talking about the digital shift that started nearly 20 years ago and that has dramatically transformed the retail landscape and the jobs within it. The pandemic is a powerful catalyst for this transformation.
Here are some key statistics. Over 11% of sales are done online, which wasn't the case before. In addition, 62% of people now use their credit card to make retail purchases, a much higher percentage than before. Lastly, 86% of people who shop online do business with companies outside Canada. They purchase from foreign retailers, mainly American. As you can see, the retail landscape has changed dramatically in recent months.
The federal government's response and the subsequent measures adopted by Parliament were still significant. In the early months of the pandemic, the response was very aggressive. In our view, this was necessary to meet needs. The Canada emergency response benefit, given its universal nature, was able to maintain the income of Canadians and increase the savings rate. This will make it possible for the economy to recover much more strongly than if nothing had been done. In addition, the Canada emergency wage subsidy has helped our retailers maintain the employment relationship with their employees. This was necessary in a situation where certain positions were severely understaffed. There was also the Canada emergency rent subsidy. This subsidy kept commercial establishments open when the pandemic subsided enough to allow some businesses to reopen.
Other measures could be put in place. I'll elaborate on that, if I may.
During yesterday's budget presentation, we were very surprised to hear that the issue of interchange fees, the fees charged to retailers for credit card payments, would be revisited. The government has the opportunity to regulate this issue. This would cost the government nothing and would give retailers and consumers some relief. It would give them the chance to participate in the economic recovery, which we hope will be as strong as possible in the coming months. I'm optimistic about the coming months.
I hope to be able to provide appropriate answers to your questions in the next few hours.