According to Statistics Canada, in March, the Industrial Product Price Index (IPPI) increased 1.6 percent month over month and 10.0 percent year over year. The Raw Materials Price Index (RMPI) was up 2.3 percent month over month and up 34.7 percent year over year.
In March, the IPPI rose 1.6 percent, its fourth consecutive monthly increase. The IPPI excluding energy and petroleum products was up 1.3 percent. Among the 21 major commodity groups, 14 were up, 6 were down, and 1 was unchanged.
Year over year, the IPPI was up 10.0 percent, the largest increase since January 1995 (+10.4 percent). Excluding energy and petroleum products, the IPPI rose 8.1 percent. The year-over-year change in the IPPI was driven mostly by higher prices for lumber and other wood products (+68.2 percent), energy and petroleum products (+32.4 percent), and primary non-ferrous metal products (+29.3 percent).
The RMPI was up 2.3 percent in March, its sixth consecutive increase. Excluding crude energy products, the RMPI was up 0.5 percent. Among the six major commodity groups, five were up and one was down.
Year over year, the RMPI rose 34.7 percent, the largest gain on record since the start of the series in January 1981. Excluding crude energy products, the RMPI was up 16.0 percent. The year-over-year change was mostly due to higher prices for crude energy products (+91.7 percent). Metal ores, concentrates and scrap (+19.7 percent), and crop products (+31.5 percent) also contributed to the change.