Canadian manufacturing business conditions improved only marginally in January, according to the Royal Bank of Canada’s Canadian manufacturing purchasing managers’ index released today. January’s reading of 50.5 was slightly higher than the survey-low of 50.4 recorded in both November and December. The RBC PMI  is a monthly survey conducted in association with Markit, a financial information services company, and the Purchasing Management Association of Canada.

“The January RBC PMI rose only slightly from the survey low recorded at the end of last year, with the improved reading partly reflective of a return to marginal growth for manufacturing output,” said Cheryl Paradowski, president and CEO of the Purchasing Management Association of Canada. “Meanwhile, new order and employment expansion rates both weakened over the month, with the rate of job creation, in particular, the slowest since January 2012.”

Employment in Canada's manufacturing sector increased in January, taking the current sequence of job creation to 12 months. However, the rate of growth has slowed continually since reaching a peak last May, with the latest expansion only marginal. Ontario recorded the strongest rate of job creation.

The RBC PMI is based on data compiled from monthly replies to questionnaires sent to purchasing executives in over 400 industrial companies.