Canada. Manufacturing sales decreased 5.4% in January 2009

Manufacturing sales decreased 5.4% to $41.7 billion in January 2009, falling to the lowest level in almost 10 years. Motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts industries, particularly in Ontario, reported record decreases during the month.

Excluding motor vehicles and parts and accessories, manufacturing sales decreased a more moderate 1.2% compared with December 2008.

Constant dollar manufacturing sales, which are measured in 2002 prices, fell 6.4% to $38.1 billion in January. This was the sharpest decrease in constant dollar sales since the current series started in 1997.

At the industry level, sales in 14 of 21 manufacturing industries decreased in January, accounting for about three-fifths of total sales.

Sales decreases centred in transportation equipment industry

The transportation equipment industry reported its largest monthly decline on record, falling 27.3% in January. Most of the decline was due to lower sales by motor vehicle (-46.3%) and motor vehicle parts manufacturers (-27.1%). Both sectors were faced with severe market downturns, which resulted in extended closures and slowdowns at numerous plants during the month.

Primary metal manufacturers also reported lower sales in January. Sales fell 10.5% in January, following decreases of 13.9% in December and 19.1% in November. Primary metal manufacturers have seen prices decrease steadily since August 2008, and the recent declines in sales have been exacerbated by weakening global demand.

Some sectors had a slight increase in manufacturing sales in January, following the decreases reported by 20 of 21 industries in December. Petroleum and coal product manufacturers reported a 7.2% increase compared with December.

This was the first gain in seven months, as industry prices stabilized in January after having fallen about 50% between July and December 2008. In addition, food manufacturers saw sales increase by 4.4% after three months of declines.

Ontario leads declines

In January, six provinces reported lower manufacturing sales. Ontario reported the largest decrease, with sales falling by 11.3%. Excluding Ontario, manufacturing sales in the country edged down 0.3% compared with December.

Manufacturing sales in Ontario fell $2.3 billion dollars, mostly as a result of a record drop in motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts sales. Motor vehicle manufacturing sales decreased 46.9% or $1.5 billion, and motor vehicle parts sales decreased 27.2% or $367 million.

Manitoba (-4.9%) and British Columbia (-3.0%) had the other notable sales decreases during the month.

The Atlantic provinces posted mostly positive results, with sales up 2.3% in the region compared with December. Alberta also managed a slight gain in January, the first since September 2008. Sales rose 0.6% on a slight rebound in the chemical and petroleum product industries.

Source: Statistics Canada, March 17, 2009

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