Canada Factory Activity Drops for 8th Straight Month

The S&P Global Canada Manufacturing PMI fell to 47.7 in September 2025 from 48.3 in August, and continued to reflect a contraction in the Canadian factory activity. It was the eighth consecutive month of decline in manufacturing, pressured by the series of tariffs slapped by the US on Canadian goods and domestic retaliatory levies. Marked contractions took place both for new orders and output, amid lower demand from Canada's largest trading partner. The demand for capacity drove firms to reduce staffing levels for the eighth straight month, though the pace of job losses eased to the softest rate since February. Still, input inflation rose sharply but at a much slower pace than in August while selling price inflation eased to its weakest in nearly a year, reducing underlying cost pressure. Looking ahead, firms continued to cite uncertain outlooks due to volatile policy changes and tariffs, with confidence slipping from August's seven month high and remaining well below trend.