Status
The variant of the North American Product Classification System (NAPCS) Canada 2022 for the Raw Materials Price Index (RMPI) was approved as a departmental standard on September 24, 2021. The new RMPI variant is based on NAPCS Canada 2022 Version 1.0, and replaces the previous RMPI variant based on NAPCS Canada 2017 Version 2.0.
Changes
The Raw Materials Price Index measures price changes for raw materials purchased by manufacturers in Canada for further processing. As our economy evolves, changes in our products must be reflected in the product classification used. Subsequent to the release of the updated NAPCS Canada 2022 Version 1.0, the variant for RMPI has been updated.
Changes to any variant may originate from modifications applied to the standard classification it is based on, as well as from revisions to the structure of the variant itself.
The main changes to this version of the variant is the removal from the variant the NAPCS Subclass 145122-Solid fuel products, n.e.c. and its details due to the non-applicability of these NAPCS categories in the variant.
Changes to the standard classification are described in the introduction of each new version of NAPCS Canada.
Background
In order to create a price index, price data is aggregated into distinct product classes. From the 1980s until 2013, the product classification system used by the RMPI was the Principal Commodity Groups. However, changes in the economy required periodic updates in the classification systems. Following the approval of NAPCS Canada 2012 as a departmental standard, the RMPI and the Industrial Product Price Index (IPPI) variants were approved as departmental standards in May 2013.
NAPCS is a product classification developed and updated jointly by Canada, Mexico and the United States. NAPCS Canada is the Canadian version and has a different structure than the trilateral NAPCS (for more details, see the introduction of NAPCS Canada 2022 V1.0). NAPCS Canada has been implemented by most Statistics Canada programs that have a “product” (goods and services) dimension. As new updated versions of NAPCS Canada are created, the RMPI is also updated.
The RMPI is produced and published together with the Industrial Product Price Index. Both indexes are of value in analytical studies of price formation and historical comparisons. Both are used to calculate the real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by industry.
The RMPI is a regrouping variant, it introduces alternative aggregate levels by regrouping categories of NAPCS Canada, the base statistical classification. In the RMPI variant, NAPCS Canada is generally aggregated at the three-digit group level and, to a lesser extent, at the five-digit class level. The coding is alphanumeric and each variant has its own codes at the section and/or group levels. For example, in the RMPI, a letter and two digits are used for the 6 section codes (i.e., M11 to M61).
One of the purposes of the six-digit subclass level in NAPCS Canada 2022 is to support the RMPI and the IPPI programs. There are 1,477 subclasses at the six-digit level of NAPCS Canada 2022 version 1.0, of which 102 are included in the RMPI and 682 in the IPPI.
Hierarchical structure
The structure of the NAPCS Canada 2022 Version 1.0 variant for RMPI is hierarchical. It is composed of five levels:
level 1: section (three-character alphanumeric codes)
level 2: group (three-digit standard codes and four-character alphanumeric codes)
level 3: class (five-digit standard codes and six-character alphanumeric codes)
level 4: subclass (six-digit standard codes)
level 5: detail (seven-digit standard codes)