AI Analysis: Gross domestic product (GDP) at basic prices, by industry, monthly

Executive Summary

Canada's GDP at basic prices grew 84.8% from $1.27 trillion in mid-1998 to a peak of about $2.35 trillion by early 2026, according to Statistics Canada Table 36100434's nearly 28-year monthly dataset. The data is heavily right-skewed, with aggregate categories like 'All industries' dwarfing individual sectors, and reveals clear economic shocks—most dramatically the COVID-19 pandemic, when GDP fell 7.54% in March 2020 and 10.85% in April 2020 before rapidly rebounding. Across 249 industry classifications, GDP contribution is highly concentrated in a few major sectors, while niche industries like cannabis production show extreme volatility relative to the broader economy.

Key Findings

• Canada's GDP at basic prices grew 84.8% overall, from approximately $1.27 trillion in mid-1998 to a peak of roughly $2.35 trillion in early 2026 (chained 2017 dollars).
• The dataset is heavily right-skewed: the mean GDP value ($35,406 million) is over 7 times the median ($4,636 million) across 205,943 records, reflecting the outsized influence of aggregate categories.
• April 2020 recorded the steepest single-month GDP decline at -10.85%, followed by a strong rebound of +4.00% in May and +5.23% in June 2020 as pandemic restrictions eased.
• Seven months were flagged as statistical outliers (>2 standard deviations in month-over-month change), including December 2008 (-1.28%) tied to the global financial crisis and four consecutive months during the 2020 COVID-19 shock.
• Cannabis production (licensed) is by far the most volatile industry tracked, with a coefficient of variation of 1.37, notably higher than Tobacco/cannabis manufacturing and Management of companies and enterprises.
• 'Sound recording industries' had the smallest GDP contribution among specific sectors at just $315 million in March 2026, versus $1,626,329 million for the 'All industries' aggregate, highlighting extreme concentration of economic output.
• The dataset spans 249 industry classifications and 747 unique data series (combining seasonal adjustment and price basis variants), enabling detailed sector-level and economy-wide analysis from 1997 to 2026.