According to Statistics Canada, prices for products sold by Canadian manufacturers, as measured by the Industrial Product Price Index (IPPI), declined 0.2 percent in July, led by lower prices for primary non-ferrous metal products. Prices for raw materials purchased by Canadian manufacturers, as measured by the Raw Materials Price Index (RMPI), rose 0.7 percent, primarily on higher prices for crude energy products.
The IPPI was down 0.2 percent in July, following a 0.7 percent increase in June. July marked the first decline in the IPPI in 2018. Of the 21 major commodity groups, 7 were down, 10 were up and 4 were unchanged.
Motorized and recreational vehicles (+0.4 percent) rose for a third consecutive month in July, mainly due to higher prices for passenger cars and light trucks (+0.7 percent).
The IPPI rose 6.6 percent in July compared with the same month a year earlier, continuing the upward trend that began in October 2016. Of the 21 main commodity groups, only the meat, fish and dairy products group was down year over year.
The RMPI rose for the fifth consecutive month, up 0.7 percent in July following a 0.6 percent increase in June. Of the six major commodity groups, three were up, two were down and one was unchanged.
The increase in the RMPI in July was mainly due to higher prices for crude energy products (+3.8 percent), particularly conventional crude oil (+3.8 percent), following a 1.5 percent decline the previous month. The RMPI excluding crude energy products fell 2.0 percent.
The increase in the RMPI was mostly offset by lower prices for metal ores, concentrates and scrap, which fell 5.1 percent after increasing 3.6 percent in June. Prices for crop products (-1.4 percent) were also down in July.
The RMPI was up 22.0 percent over the 12-month period ending in July, following a 20.2 percent increase in June. Year over year, the RMPI has risen every month since October 2016.
Compared with July 2017, metal ores, concentrates and scrap (+7.7 percent) put upward pressure on the RMPI. Prices for waste and scrap of metal (+18.4 percent) contributed the most to this increase.