The Output Gap Between Canada and the United States: The Role of Productivity (1994-2002)

The difference in the output gap (GDP per capita) between Canada and the United States is broken down into two components - differences in productivity (GDP per hour worked) and differences in effort (hours worked per capita) for the period 1994 to 2002. The paper shows that, on average, the majority of the output gap is accounted for by differences in hours worked rather than differences in productivity. Since 1994, the output gap has narrowed slightly, primarily because of an increase in hours worked in Canada relative to the United States.