The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday edition that despite the negative forces that might cause consumers to hunker down, including high gasoline prices, there are growing signs that Canadians are feeling more confident at the till than their U.S. counterparts. The Globe's Jason Kirby writes that Walmart recently delivered a stark warning that all might not be well with the American consumer when it reported the slowest growth in comparable U.S. store sales in six years. And when measured by the year-over-year change in net sales at Walmart's U.S. stores, revenue growth has been slowing for a year. North of the border, it's a different story. During the last three quarters, Walmart Canada's annual net sales, which the retailer breaks out in its financials, have grown faster than sales at its U.S. stores. The last time Canadian shoppers outspent Americans at Walmart was in the first quarter of 2023. Likewise with Costco. After trailing the U.S. through all of fiscal 2025, Costco's Canadian stores have grown faster during the first three quarters of fiscal 2026. Also, in August, new vehicle sales in Canada climbed 5.4 per cent compared with the year before, a sign household demand is holding up despite the trade war.