A new report from Statistics Canada shows Alberta contributed 22 per cent of the country's growth in real GDP. (Photo: Wellesenterprises | Dreamstime.com)

By David Opinko

Alberta was one of Canada’s top contributors to economic growth in 2023

May 3, 2024 | 9:15 AM

A new report from Statistics Canada shows that Alberta was one of the country’s top economic performers last year, despite national growth slowing.

Real GDP growth for all of Canada was 1.2 per cent in 2023, falling from 3.6 per cent in 2022. Alberta’s economy grew by 1.5 per cent, as supposed to 5.1 per cent the year prior.

That puts Alberta in third place for economic contributions, behind only Ontario and B.C., both of which have larger populations.

The biggest factors behind Alberta’s gains last year were mining, quarrying, and oil gas extraction, accounting 46 per cent of that momentum.

Alberta and P.E.I. became the first provinces where the food and beverage industries surpassed the pre-pandemic levels seen in 2019.

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On the other hand, the province’s construction sector had a slower 2023 and was the biggest hinderance on Alberta’s overall economic growth.

Crop yields were also down by 14.1 per cent thanks to below-average precipitation.

Alberta had its largest-ever increase in population in 2023 and economists are still waiting to see the impacts that will have.

While many of the numbers presented from Statistics Canada represent an overview of the larger marco-economic scale, another recent report shows how everyday Albertans have been impacted.

Between 2018-2022, the median after-tax income for Albertan families fell by 1.9 per cent while the cost of goods and services rose by 14.7 per cent.

The full report on real GDP growth can be found on the Statistics Canada website.

by David Opinko