COVID-19 pandemic restrictions were phased out and households and businesses resumed normal operations in the country in the quarter. This increased household spending and created a greater demand for exports.
These increases were softened by a substantial decline in housing investments and increased withdrawals of inventories in the quarter.
Thanks to higher income and greater demand, household spending on semi-durable goods and services sharply jumped.
As restrictions eased, increased spending on semi-durable goods and services reflected the increase in activities outside the home.
Expenditures on clothing and footwear surpassed pre-pandemic spending, soaring 26.8 percent and 30.3 percent respectively.
Outlays for services rose sharply. Transport services surged 40.3 percent, recreation and culture services soared 26.1 percent, food, beverages and accommodation services increased 29 percent, and personal grooming services were up 35.8 percent.
Real expenditures on durable goods fell 1.4 percent in the quarter. Higher prices, resulting partly from supply chain disruptions, constrained demand and spending.
After declining in the second quarter, Canadian exports rose 1.9 percent in the third quarter, led by crude oil exports.
Meanwhile, imports decreased, with lower imports of pharmaceutical products and toys, games and small appliances leading the decline.
The terms of trade fell, as higher growth in import prices outpaced export prices, reversing the marked increases in the previous four quarters.
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