Canadian Industrial Product Price Index Falls in April; Raw Materials Price Index Increases
Industrial product and raw materials price indexes, April 2023
Statistics Canada (StatCan) reported Tuesday (5-23-23) that prices for products manufactured in Canada, as measured by the Industrial Product Price Index (IPPI), declined 0.2% month-over-month in April and were 3.5% lower than April 2022.
The price of softwood lumber dropped 4.7% in April, following a 7.4% decline in March. Year-over-year, softwood lumber prices were down 55.7% in April. StatCan noted that lower lumber prices were partially related to the cooling in the housing market in the US and Canada amid rising interest rates. (US housing starts were 22.3% lower year-over-year in April.)
Prices of raw materials purchased by manufacturers operating in Canada, as measured by the Raw Materials Price Index (RMPI), increased 2.9% month-over-month in April but declined 10.8% year-over-year.
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