OTTAWA, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Canadian manufacturing sales dropped in June after three straight months of increases as sales in petroleum and coal product, transportation equipment and chemical industries fell, data from Statistics Canada showed on Thursday.
The 1.8 percent decrease to C$53.9 billion ($42.7 billion) from May exceeded economists' forecasts for a drop of 1.0 percent.
However, May's sales were upwardly revised to show a gain of 1.3 percent from the originally reported 1.1 percent increase.
Overall, sales fell in 15 of the 21 sectors surveyed in June, accounting for 72 percent of overall manufacturing. Stripping out the effects of price changes, volumes were down 1.0 percent.
Sales in the petroleum and coal product industry fell 7.1 percent following a 3.0 percent decline in May. A 4.1 percent decline in prices and lower volumes, particularly in eastern refineries, drove the decline in June.
Sales in the transportation equipment industry declined 2.3 percent as motor vehicle sales fell 1.8 percent and aerospace product and parts sales dropped 4.1 percent.
Chemical industry sales fell 4.5 percent, with pronounced declines in manufacturing of pesticides, fertilizers and other agricultural chemicals, the agency said.
New orders pulled back by 3.0 percent, the second straight monthly decline, nearly matching May's 3.3 percent drop.
Orders were down in 17 of 21 industries, led by fabricated metal product, petroleum and coal product, and transportation equipment industries.
($1 = C$1.2634)