According to a report issued by Statistics Canada, it is the steepest one-month decline since the agency began keeping such records nearly six decades ago.
"Economic disruptions have been both deep and widespread in the month of March," the report said. "Among the hardest hit by social distancing measures and government restrictions have been the travel- and tourism-related industries, such as personal transportation, restaurants and accommodation."
Major declines have also occurred in personal services, retailing (other than food), entertainment and sporting events, and the movie exhibition industry, it added.
While working from home and distance learning have been growing trends across society due to the shutdown of government and education facilities, the report said, the volume of output in these sectors, based on actual hours worked, is "calculated to decline dramatically."
Not surprisingly, given the growing incidence of illness, the shutting of non-essential businesses and stay-at-home orders issued across the country during the pandemic, "activity in the health sector, food distribution, and online retailing and streaming have been growing," the report said.
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