Q1 2020 GDP Down, But Not As Far As Expected

Statistics Canada today released figures for the first quarter's GDP. They show a decline of 2.1% compared to Q4 2019, or an annualized decrease of 8.2%, due to COVID-19. Pundits had expected a 10% annualized decline, so the damage is not as severe as originally anticipated. This marks the sharpest decrease since economic output fell 2.3% (quarter over quarter) in the first quarter of 2008 as a result of the financial crisis. Non-residential construction actually showed an increase over Q4 of 0.5%, although StatsCan notes that "Technical and operational delays were encountered in the production of source data on buildging construction investment" and warned that larger than usual revisions may be made as actual data becomes available. Full details are available from StatsCan's website.