Gross domestic product by industry
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Real gross domestic product continued to expand in January, rising 0.5%, the same pace as in December. Growth was driven by manufacturing and, to a lesser extent, by transportation and wholesale trade. The finance and insurance sector, construction and real estate also increased. Mining and oil and gas extraction as well as retail trade decreased.
Manufacturing increases
Manufacturing grew 2.8% in January following a 0.8% gain in December. Although growth was broadly based in both durable and non-durable goods, manufacturers of fabricated metal products and of motor vehicles and associated parts recorded the largest increases.
Note to readers
The monthly gross domestic product (GDP) by industry data at basic prices are chained volume estimates with 2002 as their reference year. This means that the data for each industry and aggregate are obtained from a chained volume index multiplied by the industry's value added in 2002. For the 1997 to 2007 period, the monthly data are benchmarked to annually chained Fisher volume indexes of GDP obtained from the constant-price input-output tables.
For the period starting with January 2008, the data are derived by chaining a fixed-weight Laspeyres volume index to the prior period. The fixed weights are the industry output and input prices of 2007. This makes the monthly GDP by industry data more comparable with the expenditure-based GDP data, chained quarterly.
Revisions
With this release of monthly GDP by industry, revisions have been made back to January 2010. For more information about monthly GDP by industry, see the National Economic Accounts module on our website (www.statcan.gc.ca/nea-cen/index-eng.htm).
The increase in motor vehicles and parts production in January was partly a recovery from temporary factors: shutdowns for retooling in November 2010 and unfavourable weather that hampered production in December. Other industries that contributed to January's rise in manufacturing were food, beverage and tobacco, and machinery. Output at refineries declined.
Transportation and warehousing sector up
The transportation and warehousing sector advanced 1.2%. Higher iron ore output in January helped to boost rail transportation (+5.0%). Truck transportation (+1.1%) benefited from increased activity in manufacturing and wholesale trade. There was also a marked increase in pipeline transportation of natural gas, mirroring the growth in exports of that commodity.
Wholesale trade grows
Wholesale trade (+0.7%) increased for a fourth consecutive month. Wholesalers of motor vehicles and parts and of building materials recorded significant increases. In contrast, wholesaling of petroleum products declined.
Retail trade edged down 0.1% in January. Gains in general merchandise stores (which includes department stores) and in food and beverage stores were more than offset by lower activity at gasoline stations, new car dealerships and furniture stores.
Upward movement in finance and insurance
The finance and insurance sector grew 0.6%, as a result of higher volume of trading on the stock exchanges and increased financial intermediation (personal and business loans, mortgages and mutual fund sales).
Construction rebounds
Construction activity rose 0.4% with increases in all components (residential and non residential buildings as well as engineering and repair work). Activity in the home resale market continued to advance, resulting in a 2.6% increase in the output of real estate agents and brokers.
Mining and oil and gas extraction declines
Mining and oil and gas extraction retreated 0.5% in January. The decline was partly attributable to difficulties affecting synthetic oil production. In contrast, natural gas extraction continued to grow. Support activities for mining, oil and gas extraction also declined, mainly as a result of reduced drilling activity.
Available on CANSIM: table 379-0027.
Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 1301.
The January 2011 issue of Gross Domestic Product by Industry, Vol. 25, no. 1 (15-001-X, free), is now available from the Key resource module of our website under Publications.
Data on gross domestic product by industry for February will be released on April 29.
For more information, or to order data, contact the dissemination agent (toll-free 1-800-887-4623; 613-951-4623; iad-info-dci@statcan.gc.ca). To enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Bernard Lefrançois (613-951-3622), Industry Accounts Division.
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