According to Statistics Canada, prices of products sold by Canadian manufacturers, as measured by the Industrial Product Price Index (IPPI), edged up 0.1 percent in February. Widespread price increases in the major commodity groups of the IPPI were largely offset by lower energy and petroleum product prices. Prices for raw materials purchased by Canadian manufacturers, as measured by the Raw Materials Price Index (RMPI), fell 0.3 percent due to lower prices for crude energy products.
The IPPI edged up 0.1 percent in February, following a 0.4 percent increase in January. The increase in the IPPI in February was widespread, with 17 commodity groups up, 2 down and 2 unchanged.
Motorized and recreational vehicles (+0.4 percent) contributed the most to the increase in the IPPI in February. The growth in this commodity group was mainly attributable to higher prices for motor vehicle engines and motor vehicle parts (+0.8 percent), aircraft (+1.2 percent), and aircraft engines, aircraft parts and other aerospace products (+1.3 percent).
The IPPI rose 1.9 percent over the 12-month period ending in February, following a 2.1 percent increase in January.
Year over year, the increase in the IPPI was mainly offset by lower prices for motorized and recreational vehicles (-3.2 percent). Lower prices for passenger cars and light trucks (-4.1 percent) were mainly responsible for the decline in this commodity group. Prices for motor vehicle engines and motor vehicle parts (-2.1 percent) and aircraft (-2.5 percent) also declined compared with February 2017.
The RMPI fell 0.3 percent in February, following a 3.4 percent increase in January. Of the six major commodity groups, five were up and one was down.
The decline in the RMPI in February was primarily due to lower crude energy product prices (-1.9 percent), especially conventional crude oil (-1.9 percent). The RMPI excluding crude energy products rose 0.9 percent.
The decline in the RMPI was mainly offset by higher prices for metal ores, concentrates and scrap (+0.7 percent), which rose for the fifth consecutive month.
Compared with the same month a year earlier, the RMPI rose 5.9 percent in February, continuing the upward trend that began in October 2016.
The increase in the RMPI was primarily due to crude energy products (+10.0 percent), specifically higher conventional crude oil prices (+10.2 percent). Year over year, crude energy prices have risen every month since July 2017. The RMPI excluding crude energy prices rose 2.9 percent.
Metal ores, concentrates and scrap prices (+6.5 percent) also contributed to the year-over-year increase in the RMPI, but to a lesser extent.