Manufacturing sales fell 0.6 per cent in May, StatCan says
Canadian Plastics
Canadian Plastics EconomyThe machinery, chemical, and fabricated metal industries were mainly responsible for the decline.
Manufacturing sales fell for a second consecutive month in May, a new report from Statistics Canada says, with the machinery, chemical, and fabricated metal industries leading the decline.
The agency said manufacturing sales fell 0.6 per cent to $57.9 billion in May.
Following record high sales in April, sales of machinery declined 16.9% to $3.1 billion in May, mainly due to lower sales of agricultural, construction, and mining machinery.
“Chemical product sales decreased 2.0% to $5.2 billion in May, following four consecutive monthly gains,” StatCan said. “Lower sales in the basic chemicals and pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing industries contributed the most to the decline.” Despite the decline in May, the agency said, total chemical product sales were up 30.1% year over year.
On the plus side, wood product sales rose 6.1 per cent to a record $5.4 billion in May, helped by higher prices. The primary metal industry also gained 3.6 per cent to reach a record $4.9 billion, also helped by higher prices.
Sales in constant dollars fell 2.5 per cent in May, StatCan said, indicating a lower volume of goods sold for the month.
Provincially, manufacturing sales declined in six provinces in May, led by Ontario, Manitoba, and Quebec, while Alberta posted the largest increase.
