Statistics Canada says manufacturing sales up 1.2% at $72.9 billion in May

Statistics Canada says manufacturing sales rose 1.2% to $72.9 billion in May, after declining 0.1% in April.

The overall increase for the month came as sales of chemical products gained 4.8% at $5.9 billion in May, boosted by higher sales of pesticide, fertilizer, and other agricultural chemical products in Alberta and pharmaceutical and medicine products in Ontario.

Motor vehicle sales rose 4.8% to $4.9 billion in May after dropping 3.6% in April as semiconductor chip supply continues to improve.

Meanwhile, sales of primary metals fell 6.9% to $5.2 billion.

Statistics Canada says weakening demand led manufacturing activity around the world to contract, notably in China, resulted in lower sales in the non-ferrous metal (except aluminum) production and processing industry.

Overall sales in constant dollars rose 2.2% in May, indicating a higher volume of goods sold.

The Canadian Press

The Canadian Press is a national news agency headquartered in Toronto and founded in 1917.