Canada’s Ivey PMI Slows in September as Price Gauge Rises
Canadian business activity remained expansionary in September but slowed from August, while a higher prices reading signalled firmer input-cost pressure.
Canada’s seasonally adjusted Ivey Purchasing Managers Index fell to 58.2 in September from 64.3 in August, when it had reached its highest level since May 2022. The result still indicates expanding economic activity because readings above 50 signal month-to-month growth, but it points to a slower pace of expansion than the prior month. [1]
The survey is based on a panel of purchasing managers across Canada and tracks their indication of changes in economic activity. Its unadjusted headline measure also edged down, to 61.9 in September from 62.7 in August, reinforcing the direction of the seasonally adjusted result. [1]
Cost conditions moved the other way. The adjusted prices index rose to 82.8 from 80.4, indicating that respondents continued to report widespread price increases and at a greater rate than in August. The release characterizes the combination of a lower headline index and higher prices gauge as slower activity growth alongside increased inflation pressure. [1]
Labour conditions remained in expansion territory as well: the adjusted employment index increased to 56.5 from 55.0. The data therefore do not describe an outright contraction in Canadian business activity or employment, but they provide a mixed near-term operating signal—slower overall growth, paired with more pronounced reported price pressure. [1]
For trade-exposed businesses, the reading is principally a domestic demand and cost indicator rather than evidence of a new tariff, policy action, or border restriction. The one-month survey change can inform monitoring of procurement conditions and pricing pressures, but the source does not identify effects on specific industries, cross-border volumes, or particular Canada-U.S. trade measures. [1]
This is a modest economic-data development: September activity remained above the expansion threshold, but the slower headline PMI and higher prices index point to a less favourable mix of demand momentum and cost pressure for Canadian firms. The source does not establish sector-specific trade effects, policy changes, or realized cross-border disruption, limiting the significance rating. [1]