Canada's business productivity fell for second consecutive quarter: StatsCan

“Overall, productivity decreased in 10 of the 16 main industry sectors in the first quarter,” the agency said in a report released on Wednesday.

Canada’s business productivity fell in the first quarter, marking a second consecutive quarterly decline as labour costs continued to outpace output.

According to Statistics Canada, the “mild contraction” in the pace of output reduced labour productivity in the business sector by 0.5 per cent in the first quarter, following a 0.3 per cent decrease in the fourth quarter of last year.