Canadian shipments for motor vehicle assembly & parts industries press forward

Canadian shipments between the first half of 2019 and 2020 declined 44.0% for the motor vehicle assembly industry and 34.4% for the automotive parts industry. But a shift in the first half of 2023 saw things change.

During this period, the motor vehicle parts industry went beyond pre-pandemic figures by 12.5% — over 2 billion dollars, according to DesRosiers Automotive Consultants (DAC). And while this industry remains behind the 2019 figure (for the first half of that year) — it only trails by 4.3%.

“Auto-related shipments took more than their fair share of hits in recent years,” said Andrew King, Managing Partner at DAC, in a statement. “However, the first half of 2023 brought with it significant growth indicating a strengthening automotive space.”

DAC said Canada has seen “dramatic inflation” in that period, but that manufacturing in these two industries is still on track.

It is also worth noting that the metalworking machinery manufacturing experienced an increase of 33.7% when compared to the first half of 2019. During the same period, the motor vehicle body and trailer manufacturing industry saw shipments jump 49.4%.

“Comparing the first half of last year to this year, assembly increased 34.4%, parts increased 22.8%, metalworking machinery increased 10.4%, and body and trailer increased 34.1%,” said DAC.

They also said the automotive space is entering a period of “transformational structural change,” as it shifts focus towards battery-electric vehicle assembly. “But in the short term at least performance has been strong.”