Economic and Social Reports

Insights

Recent developments in the Canadian economy: Fall 2022

This article provides an integrated summary of recent changes in output, consumer prices, employment and household finances. It focuses on changes in the economic data during the first half of 2022 and into the summer months. The article highlights the slower pace of economic activity in recent months, along with factors that continue to cloud the outlook as businesses and households adjust to higher borrowing costs. The report also highlights recent changes in the pace of consumer inflation, and the record decline in household wealth in the second quarter.

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Real wages and productivity during the COVID-19 pandemic

Real wages and labour productivity have usually been closely related in Canada. However, this article found that from 2019 to 2022 real wages decreased by 7.1% while labour productivity only declined by 0.3%. This gap, which grew over the course of the pandemic, is not unprecedented but it is close to its historical limits.

The article also found that the price of goods and services produced by workers has risen faster than the price of goods and services consumed by them. As a result, the increasing gap between real wages and productivity may have been felt less by workers. However, this continues to change with inflation.

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Research article

Improving the measurement of the contribution of women to the economy: Estimates of gross domestic product by gender

The gap between women’s and men’s contributions to gross domestic product (GDP) declined between 2008 and 2018. This study found that women’s contribution increased from 25.7% to 28.5%, while men’s contribution increased from 48.7% to 49.2% (while the percentage of unallocated GDP decreased).

Men’s share of GDP is highest in resource extraction industries, while women’s share of GDP is highest in public sector industries (health, education, public administration).

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