TORONTO, March 1 (Reuters) - Canadian manufacturing
activity expanded at a faster pace in February as measures of
output and new orders both rose to nine-month highs, while
inflation pressures continued to ease, data showed on Wednesday.
The S&P Global Canada Manufacturing Purchasing Managers'
Index (PMI) rose to a seasonally adjusted 52.4 in February from
51.0 in January, posting its highest level since July.
Before January's reading, the index had been below the 50
threshold that separates growth from contraction for five
consecutive months.
"February's data provided a relatively positive set of data
concerning the health of the Canadian manufacturing economy,"
Paul Smith, economics director at S&P Global Market
Intelligence, said in a statement.
"Growth rates for a range of variables improved, most
notably for output and new orders amid reports of firmer market
demand."
The output index was at 52.2, which was its highest level
since May and up from 51.0 in January. The new orders index also
climbed to its highest level since May, rising to 53.3 from 50.3
even as new export orders remained in contraction for a ninth
straight month.
"Lower inflation was also seen as a supportive demand
factor," Smith said. "Amid signs of more stability in supply
chains, these factors all helped to support an improvement in
confidence over the month and partly explained another round of
job creation in the sector."
The measure of input prices fell to its lowest level since
July 2020 at 57.9, down from 58.6 in January, while the future
output measure was at 61.6, its highest since July.
(Reporting by Fergal Smith; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
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