MNI DATA REACT: Canada Ivey PMI Falls to Record Low in April

By Greg Quinn

     OTTAWA (MNI) - Canada's Ivey purchasing managers index plunged to another

record low in April as coronavirus shutdowns remained in place. 

     The index fell to 22.8 from 26.0 in March after seasonal adjustments, the

Ivey business school at Ontario's Western University reported Thursday. The

index signaled expansion as recently as February when it was 54.1, with 50 the

dividing line between growth and contraction. 

     The prior record low in data back to 2000 was 42.1 during the 2008-2009

recession. 

     Policymakers and investors are still seeking to get a handle on how steep

and how long the recession triggered by health shutdowns to prevent more

COVID-19 fatalities will be. The Ivey index is one of the first clear readings

on Canada on April, a month where most of the health shutdown orders that took

hold in March remained in place. 

     Three of four other categories in the Ivey report showed readings below 50,

the lowest being 18.2 for the supplier deliveries index. The employment index

was 22.9, also a record low. The inventories reading climbed to 34.5 from 33.6,

while the price measure fell to 51.2 from 57.3.

--MNI Ottawa Bureau; +1 613-314-9647; email: greg.quinn@marketnews.com

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