(Tables 327-0041, 327-0042, 1997=100, quarterly, 1997 to present)
Introduction
The Machinery and Equipment Price Index (MEPI) provides quarterly estimates of price changes for machinery and equipment purchased by industries in Canada. Price indexes are calculated for industries, major groups of industries, and the total for all industries, and are also calculated for commodities. Price movement is measured on a domestic and an import basis.
- The industry and commodity designations used are those of the Input-Output Tables of the Canadian System of National Accounts. The classification system is the 1997 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).
- Industry indexes are available in CANSIM table 327-0042; commodity indexes are available in CANSIM table 327-0041.
- Additional information is presented in table 1 for industry weights and table 2 for commodity detail.
Characteristics
Prices used
Prices for domestic machinery and equipment are manufacturers’ selling prices free on board (FOB) plant on new orders as of the middle of the month.
Prices for imported equipment are represented by the producer price indexes of the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, and by a few price series from other foreign countries.
Adjustments to price indexes
Domestic and foreign price indexes are adjusted for changes in the effective rate of GST. The effective rate is the net GST tax (the tax levied on a commodity in a particular industry minus the rebated portion) divided by the value of the purchase. For most industries, the effective GST rate approaches zero per cent. Foreign price indexes are also adjusted for changes in exchange rates and custom tariffs where applicable.
Derivation of weights
- The expenditure weights for the 51 industries and 106 commodities represent capital investment for the year 1997, valued at 1997 purchaser prices. They were derived from Input-Output data, which were themselves derived largely from the series of capital expenditure by industry, reported in the annual survey, Capital and Repair Expenditures, Actual, Preliminary Actual and Intentions (survey number 2803) Investment and Capital Stock Division.
- In general, below the commodity level of detail, equal weights were assigned to component indexes.
Index formula
From 1997 forward, the MEPI series are fixed-weighted price indexes. For more information, please refer to the “
2312_d3_t9_v1_eng.pdf (PDF, 0 bytes)
(PDF Version, 192.14kb)” document on the Definitions, data sources and methods page for this index. Both the time and weight base are 1997.
Revisions
With each release, data for the previous four quarters may have been revised.
Historical data
Historical 1971=100 quarterly series are publicly available on CANSIM in tables 327-0021, 327-0022 and 327-0023.
Historical 1986=100 quarterly series are publicly available on CANSIM in tables 327-0013, 27-0014 and 327-0016.
Reference documents and further reading
Catalogue no. 15-001-X
Gross domestic product by industry
Catalogue no. 61-205-X
Private and public investment in Canada, intentions
Catalogue no. 62-011-X
Industry price indexes
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (613-951-4636; statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).