Canada's Manufacturers Had No Choice But to Increase Prices in March, Says S&P Global Economist

10:11 AM EDT, 04/01/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Canada's manufacturing sector again experienced subdued performance during March, said Paul Smith, Economics Director at S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Earlier Wednesday, the seasonally adjusted S&P Global Canada Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), a composite index designed to provide an overview of the health of the manufacturing sector, recorded 50.0 in March. That was down from 51.0 in February.

Production declined marginally and new orders were down modestly, in part linked to tariffs on trade with the neighboring United States, noted Smith in a statement.

Firms also noted that high prices were a problem for clients, but with costs rising sharply again amid supply chain disruption and increased fuel prices stemming from the war in the Middle East, manufacturers saw little choice but to increase their own charges, according to Smith.

The conflict in the Middle East, which had a relatively muted impact on the Canadian manufacturing sector compared with regions such as Europe in March, has "understandably" raised the level of uncertainty in the outlook, he added.

With U.S. tariffs also still a concern for many firms, confidence regarding production in the year ahead fell to a three-month low and remained "way below" its average level.

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