The seasonally adjusted Ivey purchasing managers index for December sees a sharp fall to 33.4 after 51.4 in November. It is not unusual for the index to drop from November to December, but it is a weak reading after two months of hovering near neutral.

The seasonally adjusted employment index is down to 49.8 in December from 54.3 in November. The index is the lowest since 49.1 in January 2022. Activity and the need for labor is lower in the winter months. The inventories index is at 43.5 in December after 48.0 in the prior month. Inventories continue to correct in expectation of slower activity. The deliveries index narrowed to 38.3 in December from 47.8 in November. Supply chain behavior is looking more normal, but perhaps with slower demand. The index for prices paid in December is up to 64.6 after 63.5 in the prior month.

The unadjusted purchasing managers index is down to 40.6 in December after 51.5 in November, and at a level that points to sluggish activity. The pace of employment slows with that index down to 54.4 after 57.3. The unadjusted inventories index is down 1 point to 48.4 in December. The deliveries index narrows in December to 43.3 after 50.0 in October and November. The index for prices paid is unchanged from the prior month at 66.1.

The Ivey purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) measures purchasing activity as indicated by a panel of purchasing managers selected geographically and by sector of activity to match the Canadian economy as a whole. The PMI includes both the public and private sectors and is based on month-end data. Five categories are covered in the survey: purchases, employment, inventories, supplier deliveries and prices. Results are synthesised into a single index which can range between zero and 100. A reading above (below) 50 signals rising (falling) activity versus the previous month and the closer to 100 (zero) the faster is activity growing (contracting).

The Ivey PMI is provided in two formats -- unadjusted and seasonally adjusted. The index shows responses to one question:"Were your purchases last month in dollars higher, the same, or lower than the previous month?" A figure above 50 shows an increase while below 50 shows a decrease.

The index measures the month to month variation in economic activity as indicated by a panel of purchasing managers. The index uses end of the month data and it covers all sections of Canada's economy. The PMI includes both the public and private sectors and is based on month end data Ivey PMI panel members indicate whether their organizations activity is higher than, the same as, or lower than the previous month across the following five categories: purchases, employment, inventories, supplier deliveries and prices.