RBC mfg index hits 2015 high in June

Jul. 2, 2015 – The RBC Canadian Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (RBC PMI) data for June pointed to a modest recovery in business conditions across the Canadian manufacturing sector for the first time since January, although Alberta and B.C. continued to lag other regions.

The index found that production volumes, new business intakes and employment numbers all picked up compared to May.

Adjusted for seasonal influences, the PMI registered 51.3 in June, up from 49.8 in May and above the neutral 50.0 value for the first time in five months. That said, the headline index pointed to only a marginal pace of improvement and the latest reading was still below the average since the survey began in late-2010 (53.0).

A reading less than 50.0 on the index indicates contraction.

RBC says the Alberta-British Columbia index remained negative at 44.7 — mainly because of the impact of the drop in oil prices since last year — but the other three regional indexes were above the 50.0 mark that indicates expansion.

Meanwhile, Ontario’s regional index hit a seven-month high of 57.0, up from 55.5 in May.

“The province was likely a main beneficiary of rising exports with lower oil prices both supporting U.S. growth and weakening the Canadian dollar,” Royal Bank said in its analysis Thursday.

— With files from The Canadian Press