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Gross domestic product by industry, August 2013

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Released: 2013-10-31

Real gross domestic product rose 0.3% in August, after increasing 0.6% in July and declining 0.5% in June.

The output of goods-producing industries grew 0.4% in August, led by oil and gas extraction. The agriculture and forestry sector also increased. In contrast, manufacturing and utilities declined. Construction was unchanged.

The output of service industries increased 0.3% in August, after gaining 0.4% in July, as almost all major industrial sectors registered growth. Gains were recorded in accommodation and food services, wholesale and retail trade, professional services as well as transportation and warehousing services. The public sector (education, health and public administration combined) edged up, while finance and insurance edged down.

Chart 1  Chart 1: Real gross domestic product rises in August - Description and data table
Real gross domestic product rises in August

Chart 1: Real gross domestic product rises in August - Description and data table

Mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction grows

Mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction grew 1.9% in August, after expanding 1.5% in July.

Oil and gas extraction was up 2.8% in August, mainly as a result of a notable increase in oil production. Natural gas extraction was also up.

Support activities for mining and oil and gas extraction increased 2.8% in August, after rising 4.9% in July, as both drilling and rigging services were up.

In contrast, mining and quarrying (excluding oil and gas extraction) was down 1.1%, as decreases in potash and metallic mineral mining more than offset an increase in coal mining.

Chart 2  Chart 2: Oil and gas extraction grows in August  - Description and data table
Oil and gas extraction grows in August

Chart 2: Oil and gas extraction grows in August  - Description and data table

Wholesale and retail trade increase

Wholesale trade grew 0.4% in August, led by wholesaling of personal and household goods. Wholesaling of machinery, equipment and supplies and of motor vehicles and parts was also up in August. These gains were partially offset by a decline in the output of miscellaneous wholesalers (which includes agricultural supplies).

Retail trade grew 0.3% in August. There were notable gains at food and beverage stores, clothing and clothing accessories stores as well as building material and garden equipment supplies dealers. In contrast, retailing activity was down at gasoline stations, electronics and appliance stores and motor vehicle and parts dealers.

Manufacturing output declines

Manufacturing output declined 0.3% in August, after increasing 0.9% in July. Manufacturing of non-durable goods was down 0.7% in August, mainly because of decreases in chemical manufacturing and in beverage and tobacco manufacturing.

Manufacturing of durable goods was unchanged in August. There was a notable decline in miscellaneous manufacturing and, to a lesser extent, in primary metal manufacturing. The declines offset gains in the manufacturing of computer and electronic products, fabricated metal products and wood products.

Construction is unchanged

Construction was unchanged in August. A decline in residential and non-residential building construction offset growth in engineering and repair construction.

The output of real estate agents and brokers rose 2.5% in August, up for a sixth consecutive month, as activity in the home resale market increased.

Other industries

Accommodation and food services grew 1.3% in August, in parallel with an increase in the number of overnight travellers to Canada.

The transportation and warehousing sector grew 0.4%, mainly as a result of gains in rail transportation and support activities for transportation.

The public sector (education, health and public administration combined) edged up 0.1%, while the finance and insurance sector edged down 0.1%.

Chart 3  Chart 3: Main industrial sectors' contribution to the percent change in gross domestic product, August 2013 - Description and data table
Main industrial sectors' contribution to the percent change in gross domestic product, August 2013

Chart 3: Main industrial sectors' contribution to the percent change in gross domestic product, August 2013 - Description and data table

  Note to readers

The monthly gross domestic product (GDP) by industry data at basic prices are chained volume estimates with 2007 as the reference year. This means that the data for each industry and each aggregate are obtained from a chained volume index multiplied by the industry's value added in 2007. The monthly data are benchmarked to annually chained Fisher volume indexes of GDP obtained from the constant-price input-output tables up to the latest input-output tables year (2010).

For the period starting with January 2011, the data are derived by chaining a fixed-weight Laspeyres volume index to the prior period. The fixed weights are 2010 industry prices.

This approach makes the monthly GDP by industry data more comparable with the expenditure-based GDP data, chained quarterly.

All data in this release are seasonally adjusted. For more information on seasonal adjustment, see Seasonal adjustment and identifying economic trends.

Revisions

With this release of monthly GDP by industry, revisions have been made back to January 2013.

In addition, revised monthly GDP by industry data for the historical period from 1997 to 2006 have been released as part of the Canadian System of National Accounts comprehensive revision. The data for this period incorporate the capitalization of research and development and military weapons systems. A document describing the approach used to compile the monthly GDP by industry revised data for the 1997 to 2006 period will be released in the next few weeks.

For more information about monthly national GDP by industry, see the System of national economic accounts module on our website.

Data on gross domestic product by industry for September will be released on November 29.

Contact information

For more information, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca).

To enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Allan Tomas (613-951-9277), Industry Accounts Division.

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