According to Statistics Canada, prices for products manufactured in Canada, as measured by the Industrial Product Price Index (IPPI), declined 0.3 percent month over month in August, but were up 14.3 percent from August 2020.
Prices of raw materials purchased by manufacturers operating in Canada, as measured by the Raw Materials Price Index (RMPI), decreased 2.4 percent month over month in August, yet increased 27.7 percent compared with the same month in 2020.
The IPPI decreased 0.3 percent month over month in August. Of the 21 major commodity groups, 16 were up and 5 were down.
The IPPI was up 14.3 percent year over year in August, following a 15.7 percent increase in July. Prices for refined petroleum energy products (including liquid biofuels; +50.1 percent), basic and semi-finished iron or steel products (+66.6 percent), and petrochemicals (+84.3 percent) were the primary contributors to this growth.
The RMPI fell 2.4 percent month over month in August, its first decrease since September 2020. Of the six major commodity groups, four were up and two were down.
After five consecutive months of gains, prices for metal ores, concentrates and scrap were down 2.7 percent in August. In this group, prices for iron ores and concentrates (-24.2 percent) recorded their largest decrease since the beginning of the series in 1981. This decline was largely attributable to reduced demand for iron ore following measures implemented by China to limit production at steel mills.
Year over year, the RMPI rose 27.7 percent, driven up mainly by prices for conventional crude oil (+55.3 percent), canola (+87.2 percent) and hogs (+59.2 percent).