Canada’s real GDP is likely to grow 3% in May, bouncing back from a record decline in April, Statistics Canada said in a flash estimate on Friday, as businesses across the country began to reopen following coronavirus-linked shutdowns.
Growth in April plunged by 11.6% from March, a record month-on-month decline, although the fall was less than the 13% predicted by analysts.
All 20 industrial sectors of the Canadian economy were down in April, StatsCanada said, as most non-essential businesses remained shut to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.
In May, many regions began phased reopenings. That helped bolster output across sectors, including manufacturing, retail and wholesale, Statistics Canada said.
The Canadian dollar maintained its earlier decline and was down 0.2% at C$1.3682 to the greenback, or 73.09 U.S. cents, after the GDP data release.
— Reuters