According to Statistics Canada, the price of products manufactured in Canada, as measured by the Industrial Product Price Index (IPPI), increased 1.3 percent month-over-month in October and 16.7 percent compared with the same month in 2020. Prices of raw materials purchased by manufacturers operating in Canada, as measured by the Raw Materials Price Index (RMPI), increased 4.8 percent month-over-month in October and 38.4 percent year over year.
The IPPI rose 1.3 percent month-over-month in October, following a 1.2 percent increase in September. Prices for energy and petroleum products were up by 7.4 percent in October, and were 72.1 percent higher than the same month last year. Motor gasoline (+5.3 percent), diesel and biodiesel fuels (+11.3 percent), as well as natural gas liquids and related products (+14.7 percent) all posted monthly increases.
Several metal commodities posted higher prices in October. Prices for other non-ferrous metals and alloys—the product group that includes magnesium—increased by 9.1 percent. Prices for unwrought aluminum and aluminum alloys (+4.6 percent), as well as unwrought copper and copper alloys (+2.9 percent), also rose in October.
The RMPI was up by 4.8 percent month over month in October, following a 2.4 percent increase in September. Prices for crude energy products were up by 13.0 percent in October. Conventional crude oil (+12.0 percent), natural gas (+21.0 percent) and coal (+25.2 percent), all posted increases. Prices for oil were driven up by global demand exceeding supply. Natural gas prices in North America have been influenced by the European market, where supplies have been strained amidst colder than expected weather.
Prices for gold, silver, and platinum group metal ores and concentrates were down 4.8 percent, while copper ores and concentrates (+5.7 percent) and lead and zinc ores and concentrates (+4.3 percent) posted increases.