Canada: Manufacturing PMI eases in August to lowest since June 2020
The S&P Global Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to 48.7 in August from July’s 52.5. August’s result marked the worst reading since June 2020. As such, the index dropped below the 50.0 no-change mark, signaling a deterioration in manufacturing sector business conditions from the previous month.
August’s contraction was driven by stronger declines in output, new orders and employment—for the first time in over two years. New orders, in particular, were affected by growing economic uncertainty and a slowdown in domestic demand. More positively, both input and output price inflation moderated in July, in line with CPI data released by Statistics Canada. Meanwhile, firms remained optimistic about output in the year ahead, though sentiment eased from that seen in July.