Canada’s gross domestic product grew by a strong 5.4% in the third quarter on an annual basis and by 1.3% from the previous quarter as spending on in-person services rose, according to data released by Statistics Canada on Tuesday.
Household spending on semi-durable goods and on services had the biggest annual increases of 68.7% and 27.8%, respectively.
The easing of COVID restrictions helped lift spending on all services, including those on transportation, recreation, culture, food and accommodation, and personal grooming.
The third quarter offered a glimpse of what the post-vaccine world will look like, as Canadians attended concerts and games, and went to restaurants with few restrictions.
Supply chain disruptions, though, continued to take a toll. Expenditures on durable goods fell as bottlenecks led to shortages of semiconductor chips and high prices, which deterred spending by households.
Business investment in residential structures plunged by 31.3% from a year earlier as shortages of materials and workers persisted.
Although the third quarter GDP figure stands 1.4% below that of the fourth quarter of 2019, the economy is expected to return to the pre-pandemic level by the year’s end, led by household spending on services and government spending.
