OTTAWA -- Statistics Canada says manufacturing sales rose 2.5 per cent to $53.7 billion in July, exceeding the previous record of $53.2 billion set in July 2008.
The agency says the July gain was mainly due to higher sales in the transportation equipment and primary metals industries.
Economists had expected a gain of one per cent, according to Thomson Reuters.
Statistics Canada says manufacturing sales have been trending upwards since January. July sales were up 16 of 21 industries in, representing about 56 per cent of the country's manufacturing.
Transportation equipment sales rose 10.3 per cent to $10.1 billion in July, while primary metal sales rose 4.0 per cent to $4.2 billion.
In July, five industries reported lower sales, with food manufacturing reporting the largest decrease, down 1.4 per cent to $7.9 billion.
