Canada Q3 Capacity Utilization at Over 1-Year High

Canadian industries operated at 79.3% of their production capacity in the third quarter of 2024, up slightly from 79.1% in the second quarter and above market estimates of 78.9%.

It was the highest reading since Q2 2023, as capacity utilization in the electric power generation, transmission and distribution industry rose 1.9 percentage points to 83.4% in the third quarter.

This increase coincided with higher demand for electricity for cooling-related purposes because of higher-than-normal temperatures observed in some parts of the country during the summer.

However, capacity utilization in mining, quarrying, and oil and gas fell 0.7 points to 75.9% in Q3, driven by lower oil sands and natural gas extraction amid facility maintenance.

Concurrently, the capacity utilization rate in the manufacturing sector edged up 0.4 percentage points to 78.2%, driven by petroleum and coal product manufacturing (+2.2 percentage points) and transportation equipment manufacturing (+1.4 pps).