Manufacturing sales down, wholesale sales up in August, reports Statistics Canada

Manufacturing sales fell two percent to $70.4 billion in August as petroleum and coal sales edged down on lower prices and volumes, said Statistics Canada.

The agency said it was the fourth consecutive month manufacturing sales declined.

The decline came as petroleum and coal sales fell 3.9 percent to $9.9 billion in August and chemical manufacturing industry sales decreased 4.5 percent to $5.6 billion.

Overall Canadian manufacturing sales in constant dollars fell 1.7 percent in August, indicating a lower volume of goods sold.

Paul Ashworth, chief North America economist at Capital Economics, said the weak global backdrop is a concern.

“The manufacturing survey evidence has deteriorated markedly over the past few months, as zero-COVID lockdowns have an ongoing dampening effect on Chinese demand and surging utility prices are ravaging European demand,” Ashworth wrote in a report.

“Closer to home, the weakness in U.S. housing construction and consumer discretionary goods demand will also weigh on Canadian manufacturing. In short, brace yourselves for more disappointment.”

In a separate report, Statistics Canada also said Friday wholesale sales in August rose 1.4 percent to reach a new high of $81.3 billion.

The gains were led by the miscellaneous goods subsector which rose 3.9 percent to $12.8 billion, helped by a 13.2 percent gain to $5.2 billion by the agricultural supplies industry.

The machinery, equipment and supplies subsector gained 1.6 percent at $17.4 billion as sales in the other machinery, equipment and supplies industry added 6.4 percent at four billion dollars and the construction, forestry, mining, and industrial machinery, equipment and supplies industry rose four percent to $6.0 billion.

The food, beverage and tobacco subsector rose 1.8 percent to $14.5 billion.

Wholesale sales in constant dollar terms rose 1.2 percent in August.