Canadian manufacturing sales decreased 1.3 percent in April to $46.7 billion, according to Statistics Canada. The transportation equipment sector accounted for most of the decline. Manufacturers in the petroleum and coal products industry also reported lower sales. The decrease in total manufacturing sales for April reversed much of the 1.9 percent gain for March.

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Lower sales were reported in 15 of 21 industries, representing about 56 percent of total manufacturing.

Constant dollar manufacturing sales declined 1.8 percent in April.

By Sector
In the transportation equipment sector, sales fell 7.8 percent to $7.0 billion in April. The decline reflected an 8.6 percent drop in the motor vehicle industry and a 5.4 percent decrease in the motor vehicle parts industry. Manufacturers in both industries reported that the tsunami in Japan affected the availability of some inputs.

Production in the aerospace product and parts industry fell 11.6 percent in April to $1.2 billion. Manufacturers in the petroleum and coal products industry reported a 1.7 percent decline, stemming entirely from reduced volumes by some manufacturers.

Higher sales were led by gains in the food (+1.8 percent), machinery (+3.2 percent) and chemical (+1.7 percent) industries.

By Province
In April, nine provinces posted lower sales compared with March, with the largest decreases in dollar terms occurring in Ontario and Quebec.

In Ontario, sales decreased 1.8 percent to $20.7 billion. The decline was largely attributable to an 8.5 percent drop in motor vehicle and a 5.2 percent decrease in motor vehicle parts sales. The machinery (-3.2 percent), petroleum and coal products (-2.0 percent) and printing and related support activities (-6.2 percent) industries also contributed to the provincial decrease. A 2.6 percent gain in the food industry partly offset the overall decline.

Sales declined 1.3 percent in Quebec to $11.5 billion as a result of a 12.7 percent drop in production in the aerospace product and parts industry. Higher sales in the petroleum and coal products (+3.4 percent), food (+2.2 percent) and chemical (+5.2 percent) industries partly offset the decline in aerospace.

Sales decreases in Nova Scotia (-5.9 percent), Saskatchewan (-5.3 percent) and Newfoundland and Labrador (-7.5 percent) were related to lower sales in the non-durable goods industries.

Alberta was the only province to post an increase in April, with sales rising 2.3 percent to $5.9 billion. Sales in Alberta were at their highest level since October 2008. The advance in April was related to sales gains in the machinery (+16.7 percent) and fabricated metal product (+16.6 percent) industries.

Inventory
Inventory levels increased 1.2 percent in April to $62.7 billion, their highest level since May 2009. The gain in April was led by a 3.3 percent increase in the primary metals industry, reflecting in part higher finished product inventories.

Petroleum and coal product inventories advanced 3.1 percent in April, led by higher prices.

Increased levels of inventories were also reported by manufacturers in the machinery (+2.5 percent) and aerospace products and parts (+3.4 percent) industries.

The inventory-to-sales ratio increased from 1.31 in March to 1.34 in April, bringing the ratio to the highest level since September 2010.

Unfilled Orders
Unfilled orders rose for the fourth consecutive month, edging up 0.4 percent to $57.6 billion. Following a 9.6 percent increase in March, unfilled orders remained at their highest level since June 2009.

The rise in unfilled orders was largely driven by the railroad rolling stock (+25.3 percent), machinery (+4.5 percent) and fabricated metal product (+1.8 percent) industries. A 2.0 percent decline in the aerospace product and parts industry mostly offset these gains.

Excluding the aerospace industry, unfilled orders in the manufacturing sector rose 2.4 percent to $31.6 billion.

New orders declined 10.3 percent to $46.9 billion in April, reversing most of the 11.5 percent increase reported in March. Much of the decrease in new orders came from the aerospace industry.