The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday edition that Canadian Tire saw higher fourth quarter sales due to a strong winter season, as customers sought shovels, boots and other cold-weather items, beating analyst expectations for sales and profit growth. The Globe's Susan Krashinsky Robertson writes that on Thursday chief executive officer Greg Hicks said as economic uncertainty continues, shoppers are proving "resilient, but discerning." One surprise in the results, he noted, was that the company's customer data showed increasing spending spanning customers of all income levels. The largest increases in the quarter came from households with the highest debt burdens. Comparable sales rose by 4.2 per cent in the quarter ended Jan. 3, compared with the same period the prior year. That blew past analysts' expectations for growth of 1.5 per cent. The flagship Canadian Tire chain saw double-digit growth in sales of winter and holiday products in the quarter, contributing to 2.7-per-cent comparable sales growth. Outerwear and footwear partly drove sales growth of 9.5 per cent at Sport Chek. At Mark's, weather-related products, as well as a strong Black Friday sales period, drove sales growth of 7.2 per cent in the quarter.