Smile

Well, this is embarrassing.

Ninety days ago StatsCan said Canada’s economy was in a marginal annualized decline – down one-tenth of one percent over a three-month period. “On Friday, you became the only leader in the G7 to have taken your country into a recession,” Con leader Poilievre wrote in an open letter to PM Carney “You promised you would deliver the fastest-growing economy in the G7. You delivered the only recession in the G7.”

Maybe you caught this exchange in Parliament. Probably not. Organizing your sock drawer would have been a better use of time.

But Canada was not in recession in the first three months of the year, as was reported in May (to Mr. Poilievre’s obvious delight). The data has since been revised (as more of it became available) and StatsCan now says GDP in Q1 was higher, not lower. P{ositive at 0.3 per cent, annualized.

Oops.

Now let’s look at what’s currently happening. In the second quarter we blew the doors off. Growth of the Canadian economy surged to 3.3% (annualized) – the fastest advance in three years. That’s better growth that in the US (we doubled their pace). In fact, it is the strongest performance in all of the G7.

Maple power: Canada leading G7 in growth

The UK, America, Japan, Germany, Italy and France are all trailing Canada.

Despite the Trumpian tariffs, Canadian exports swelled in the past few months, led by a rebound in cars and pickups. The rustling and stabilizing real estate market helped economic activity, especially in Ontario, Quebec and BC. Businesses upped their capital spending on plants and equipment, especially computers (+16%) and related gear. Money laid out for machinery jumped to the best level in two years. Higher oil prices helped in the energy sector, offsetting the drag they caused for consumer spending and fgactory inputs.

Overall, Canada moved forward. Even the manufacturing sector, whacked by tariffs, increased its overall output. The advance, StatsCan says, was broadly-based and across all major segments of the economy.

In contrast, the US economy in Q2 grew at an anemic 1.5% – less than half our advance – and was down meaningfully from a 2.1% increase in the first months of 2026. Meanwhile US inflation is higher than in Canada, and interest rates there are stiffer. Americans are paying an average of 6.73% for a fixed-rate mortgage, compared with 4% here. Last month Canada created 75,000 new jobs. America lost 21,000. Given that the US economy is ten times the size of ours, the disparity is staggering.

In other words: Carney, 1, Trump, 0.

Do not let this moment be lost on you. Yesterday we wrote here about the Canadian banks, their solid performance, profit advances and the way they’re making every Canadian with an index ETF better off. Canada is creating more jobs with fewer price pressures, lower borrowing costs, a more robust economy and less wealth disparity, plus a far lower national debt ratio – all while coping with capricious, unjustified US tariffs and an American president who calls us ‘nasty’, is trying crush the nation and steal one of the Great Lakes.

Our country is not broken. Not bowed, nor cowed nor cowering.

It’s not perfect. We can do better. But they can still kiss our ass.

About the picture: “This is Luna,” writes Gail from Ontario, now in the UK. “She is always smiling, full of energy and is so happy when she gets to spend the day with her favourite dog sitter in London, England. The feeling is mutual!”

To be in touch or send a picture of your beast, email to ‘garth@garth.ca’.

Source: https://www.greaterfool.ca/2026/08/28/smile-2/