Canadian industries operated at 79.3% of their production capacity in the second quarter, down from 79.9% in the first quarter, which was revised down slightly, according to Statistics Canada.
The capacity utilization rate in the manufacturing sector declined by 0.7 percentage points to 76.7% in the second quarter. This decrease is mainly attributed to petroleum and coal product manufacturing and food manufacturing.
On the flip side, the capacity utilization rate for leather and allied products increased by 5.5 percentage points, followed by a 3.6 percentage point increase in computer and electronic products and a 2.7 percentage point increase in textile mills.
In the mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction sector, capacity utilization decreased by one percentage point to 75.9% in the second quarter. This decline coincided with the decrease in oil and gas extraction from forest fires and maintenance work.
Capacity utilization in the electric power generation, transmission and distribution sector also decreased, going from 86% in the first quarter to 83.1% in the second quarter. This decline included a decrease in hydroelectric production because of dry conditions in some areas of the country.
The only industrial capacity utilization rate that increased in a non-manufacturing industry was forestry and logging, ticking up 0.2 percentage points to 79% this quarter.