The engineering and construction sector are fuelling B.C.’s economic growth and Gross Domestic Product (GDP), says Statistics Canada (StatsCan) data. In fact the growth last year reached a staggering 48.7 per cent.
For the first time since 2011, GDP by industry increased in every province — rising 3.3 per cent in 2017 — following declines for two consecutive years, according to the latest StatsCan data B.C.’s economy had the second-highest growth rate at 3.9 per cent, trailing only Alberta, The Toronto Star reports.
GDP, a measure of all goods and services produced in an economy during a certain period of time, provides information on industries that are growing and contracting.
StatsCan section chief Guillaume Dubé said the growth related to new projects including a natural gas expansion project in Dawson Creek and a Prince Rupert propane export terminal.
Fifteen out of 19 subsectors saw increases — but wood product manufacturing, the largest manufacturing subsector in B.C., declined 2.1 per cent, Dubé said.H he explained that many sawmill and wood-preservation operations were forced to shut down during last year’s wildfire season, the worst in the province’s history since 1958.
Dubé said that GDP doesn’t take into account the distribution of wealth or whether the wealth of individuals is growing.
