Assessing Aggregate Labour Productivity Trends in Canada and the United States: Total Economy versus Business Sector Perspectives

Jeremy Smith of the Centre for the Study of Living Standards looks at the comparability of productivity growth measures in Canada and the United States, and finds that comparisons of aggregate productivity performance are sensitive to whether trends are assessed at the business sector or total economy level. This sensitivity is a result of substantially higher measured non-business sector productivity growth in Canada relative to the United States, which is partially explained by different measurement techniques in the two countries. There is no definitive answer as to which level is preferable for international productivity growth comparisons.