Each week, Business of Cannabis delivers a weekly series of insights from our partners at Cannabis Benchmarks®.
The Canada Cannabis Spot Index was assessed at C$6.38 per gram this week, up 3.7% from last week’s C$6.15 per gram. This week’s price equates to US$2,201 per pound at the current exchange rate.
This week’s report includes revised store count and sales forecasts for Ontario in light of a recent announcement by the province’s Alcohol and Gaming Commission (AGCO). Changes to Ontario’s licensing process late last year have already resulted in a significant uptick in new legal cannabis stores in the province since April. Cannabis Benchmarks has tracked the opening of new retailers, which has averaged almost 17 per month since April, lower than the goal of 20 set by AGCO, but the slower pace is understandable given the coronavirus pandemic.
A September 1 announcement by AGCO stated that they are moving to “double the pace of store authorizations this fall,” indicating the possibility of up to 40 new retailers approved monthly. Due to this change, Cannabis Benchmarks now projects almost 300 stores open in the province by the end of 2020. We project total annual sales in Ontario to increase to C$645M this year. The uptick in sales in Canada’s most populous province will add roughly C$13M to the national sales total, which Cannabis Benchmarks now projects at C$2.45B for 2020.
