Canada’s gross domestic product edged up 0.1 per cent in the month of June, with 0.8 per cent real GDP growth in the second quarter of this year, Statistics Canada said Wednesday.
The Canadian economy grew at an annual rate of 3.3 per cent during the second quarter, its fourth consecutive expansion.
After flat growth in May, 14 of 20 industrial sectors had a slight expansion in June, with client-facing industries driving much of the growth after the easing of public health and border restrictions.
But the data agency said there are early indications that the real GDP came down by 0.1 per cent in July, particularly in manufacturing, retail trade, wholesale and utilities sectors.
The report says businesses ramped up their investments in inventories, engineering structures and machinery and equipment.
Meanwhile, household spending on semi-durable goods rose, with the jump driven by an increase in spending on clothing and footwear as more people headed back to the office.
At the same time, housing investment declined in the second quarter along with household spending on durable goods.
Disposable income rose — as did household incomes, with higher compensation of employees — but savings rates declined from 9.5 per cent to 6.2 per cent in the second quarter.
By comparison, that rate was 2.7 per cent at the end of 2019, the agency said.