Canada’s economy picked up steam in Q1 2017

Jun. 15, 2017 – The pace of Canada’s economic growth jumped in the first quarter of this year, helped by continued household spending and a turnaround in business investment.

Statistics Canada says real gross domestic product grew at an annualized rate of 3.7 per cent in the first three months of the year.

That was short of expectations. Economists had estimated the growth rate for the quarter would be 3.9 per cent, according to Thomson Reuters.

However, the last month of the quarter was stronger than expected.

Growth in March came in at 0.5 per cent, which was higher than the estimate of 0.2 per cent.

Results for the second half of 2016 were also revised higher as the figures for third and fourth quarters were increased to 4.2 per cent and 2.7 per cent, compared with earlier readings of 3.8 per cent and 2.6 per cent respectively.

News from © Canadian Press Enterprises Inc. 2017