Manufacturing sales in this country dropped by 0.6% in October, dragged down in part by sharply lower sales in the volatile aerospace products and parts sector, according to figures released this morning by Statistics Canada.
Analysts had expected a 0.4% drop from September. StatsCan revised September's month-on-month gain to 2.2% from an initial 2.1%.
Production of aerospace products and parts fell by 15.6% after a 17.4% increase in September, a month when output in the sector hit a record high.
The primary metals industry notched a 5.5% dip from September, when sales had hit their highest level since October 2008. Excluding these two sectors, overall manufacturing sales grew by 0.4% from September.
Manufacturers in 15 of 21 industries, representing more than 60% of total manufacturing, reported higher sales. New orders though fell by 1.9% on lower demand in the transportation equipment and primary metal industries.
