Contribution of ICT Use to Output and Labour-Productivity Growth in Canada

Working Papers.

29 pages Abstract: There is ample evidence that information and communication technologies (ICT) contributed significantly to the surge in output and labour-productivity growth in the United States in the late 1990s. Does Canada share the U.S. experience? Has ICT influenced the trend productivity and output growth? Answers to these questions will help improve the Bank’s forecasts of inflationary pressures. This paper examines the first question. A simple growth-accounting exercise suggests that, in contrast to the United States, Canada did not experience an acceleration in the contributions of ICT use to output and labour-productivity growth.