Scotiabank’s Commodity Price Index, which measures price trends in 32 of Canada’s major exports, edged down by 0.5% in June, after reaching a new record high in May (134.9% above the October 2001 cyclical low).

The pause, after multiple consecutive records, reflects an easing in the Metal and Mineral Index from extraordinary heights, Scotiabank says.

The 4.9% month-over-month drop in the Metal and Mineral Index just offset a snap-back in the Forest Product Index, up 4.3%, alongside a temporary seasonal rebound in building material prices, a solid 3.5%
advance in the Agricultural Index and a 1.1% gain in the Oil and Gas Index.

Despite a fairly tight global oil supply/demand balance, OPEC has maintained its output restraints, implemented last October and earlier this year. It says that stepped-up oil production would only result in a build-up of crude oil stocks, rather than greater gasoline and other product supplies, given refinery constraints in the United States and elsewhere.

On the metal and minerals front, lower copper, nickel, zinc, aluminium and precious metal prices more than offset strength in molybdenum and record prices for uranium, lead and potash.