Uncertainties around the duration of the pandemic, the prospect of future business restrictions, and the resiliency of both customers and suppliers will persist well into 2021.
Manufacturing Sales & Productivity Performance February to September 2020
20% 14.9%
15%
13.6%
10% 5%
3.1%
0% -5%
-2.5%
-4.2%
-10% -15%
-12.0% Canada
Manitoba Sales
restrictions, and the resiliency of both customers and suppliers will persist well into 2021. Yet, it is possible to point to some trends both in market conditions and in the capabilities of manufacturers themselves which suggest that the outlook over the year ahead, while fraught
12
Saskatchewan
-12.6% Alberta
Productivity
with risk, may be positive for some companies and industry sectors. Retail sales, for instance, provide a good gauge of the strength of consumer demand within Canada. Spending did take a hit as the first wave of the pandemic struck last March. More activity went
Prairie Manufacturer Magazine • Winter 2020
-10.2%
online. Canadian retail sales had fully recovered by June and were running almost four per cent above pre-COVID levels in September. The buoyancy of Canadian consumers, albeit aided by government wage supports, indicates that domestic demand is likely to remain
