Markets & Finance · Intelligence
—The flat quarter. Canada’s economy was unchanged in the first three months of 2026, edging down at an annual pace of one-tenth of one per cent after a weak end to 2025.
—The recession debate. Two soft quarters in a row met one common definition of recession, but several economists argued the label did not fit an economy that had merely stalled.
—The housing drag. Home resales were weak through the quarter, and the average asking rent has now fallen for nineteen straight months on a yearly basis.
—The quiet strength. Households kept spending, net worth rose to just over eighteen and a half trillion Canadian dollars, and an early estimate showed growth bouncing back in April.
