Canada producer and raw material prices for May 2021
- Producer price MoM 2.7% versus 1.6% last month (see chart above). This was the strongest monthly gain since February 2021, when prices increased 2.8%. Of the 21 major commodity groups, 14 were up, 6 were down, and 1 was unchanged.
- The growth in the IPPI was led by prices for lumber and other wood products (+17.9%), which were up for a fifth consecutive month. The growth in this commodity group was primarily the result of constant price increases for softwood lumber (+27.6%), which posted its largest monthly gain since the beginning of this series in 1956. Compared with May 2020, prices for softwood lumber rose 235.5%.
- Producer price is YoY 16.4% versus 14.3% last month
- Raw material prices MoM 3.2% versus 1.0% last month (see chart below of the raw material price index). This was the eighth straight increase.. Of the six major commodity groups, five were up and one was down.
- Raw material prices 40.1% versus 56.4% last month
- Widespread price increases for metal ores, concentrates and scrap (+4.7%), especially gold, silver, and platinum group metal ores and concentrates (+3.5%), were the main source of the growth in the RMPI in May. Prices for iron ores and concentrates (+12.1%) and nickel ores and concentrates (+4.7%) also pushed this group upward, but to a lesser extent.
Needless to say, the prices to the producers are surging that rates that are unprecedented. The question is how much of the gains will be sustainable, or will we see a reversal after the impact from reopenings worked its way out?
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