OTTAWA (CP) -- The Industrial Products Price Index and the Raw Materials Price Index rose 0.3 and 3.3 percent respectively in January, led by a rebound in petroleum prices.
Petroleum and coal prices rebounded 4.4 percent in January, the biggest contributor to the industrial products increase, followed by primary metal products, which rose 1.7 percent.
Excluding petroleum and coal prices, Statistics Canada reports the industrial index edged down 0.1 percent after two straight monthly gains.
The increase in primary metal products was offset mainly by a decline in motor vehicles and other transportation equipment, down 0.7 percent, partly due to a 1.1 percent appreciation in the Canadian dollar.
The industrial index was down 0.3 percent in January compared with the same month a year earlier.
The raw materials index was pushed up by rising prices for mineral fuels, particularly crude oil, which rose 5.6 percent.
Raw materials prices jumped 29.3 percent from a year earlier, as a result of sharply higher prices for mineral fuels (up 62.3 percent) and non-ferrous metals (up 39.6). All other groups posted declines.
