Motor vehicle manufacturing posted a 20% gain in January fuelled by exports of passenger cars and light trucks. PHOTO courtesy Stellantis.
The Canadian manufacturing sector grew 0.5% in January with strong growth in durable goods manufacturing, particularly in the automotive sector, according to Statistics Canada.
Growth in the manufacturing sector helped push Canadian economic performance back into positive numbers in January with real gross domestic product (GDP) rising 0.5%, following a slight contraction (-0.1%) in December. It’s also looking good that real GDP remained in positive territory during February. Advance information from Statistics Canada indicates that real GDP increased 0.3% in February, in part because of continued increases from the manufacturing sector. (February’s estimate will be updated based on more complete data with the release of the official GDP data for the month of February on April 28.)
Meanwhile, looking more closely at the January numbers for manufacturing, durable goods manufacturing grew 1.2% in January, up for a third consecutive month. Machinery, miscellaneous, fabricated metal, and transportation equipment manufacturing drove the increase in the month. Motor vehicle manufacturing, a critical sector for Ontario based job shops, posted the largest increase within the manufacturing sector with a 20% gain. Exports of passenger cars and light trucks rose 18.7%, as easing supply chain and shipping capacity constraints alongside an increase in production days in January paved the road to higher production.
