Canada-economy-stalls-set-to-miss-Bank-of-Canada-forecast | Financial Post

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Growth in the Canadian economy remained unchanged in August, putting gross domestic product on track to grow at an annualized rate of just one per cent in the third quarter, Statistics Canada said on Thursday.

That includes an early estimate for growth increasing by 0.3 per cent in September.

The Bank of Canada revised its forecast for third quarter GDP down to 1.5 per cent in its monetary policy report earlier this month, but growth is still on track to fall below that.

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The goods-producing sector contracted by 0.4 per cent in August, reaching its lowest level since December 2021. Manufacturing led the monthly decline, contracting by 1.2 per cent. Extended maintenance shutdowns in the auto industry in Ontario contributed to the decline, with auto and parts manufacturing decreasing by 1.9 per cent. Other industries that reported declines include utilities (1.9 per cent) and wholesale trade (0.6 per cent).

Transportation and warehousing also declined by 0.3 per cent, driven by the work stoppages at Canadian National Railway Co. and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. The brief shutdown of the two railways impacted the transportation of major commodities such as meat, medicine and hazardous chemical materials.

Declining industries were offset by growth in the finance and insurance sector, which grew for the third straight month by 0.5 per cent. Growth in the financial investment services posted a gain of 2.6 per cent in August. Mining, quarrying and oil extraction posted a 0.6 per cent gain, driven by a 1.5 per cent increase in oil extraction.

The public sector posted an eighth consecutive monthly gain in August, growing by 0.2 per cent. Growth was led by public administration, with local, municipal and regional governments being the main contributors.

• Email: jgowling@postmedia.com

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