Fresh data from Statistics Canada on Friday suggests the economy was growing at a healthy clip in the second quarter and rumblings of a recession earlier in the year might’ve been overblown.

Real gross domestic product rose 3.3 per cent in the second quarter, a tick lower than economists’ expectations. That was still the fastest quarterly pace of growth since early 2023.

Exports jumped 3.6 per cent in the second quarter, led by a rebound in shipments of passenger cars and light trucks. Auto production had declined in the previous two quarters, StatCan said.

Residential investment was also giving the economy a lift as StatCan said the resale housing market was heating up over the spring, particularly in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia.

StatCan said business capital investment, meanwhile, was up 2.3 per cent in the second quarter, snapping a streak of five consecutive quarters of decline.

Spending on machinery and equipment rose to its highest level in two years, the agency said. Investments in computers and peripherals jumped 16.7 per cent in the second quarter, which StatCan said was related to the kinds of processing units used in data centres.

Higher gas prices tied to the war in Iran boosted corporate incomes in the energy sector last quarter but also acted as a drag on earnings for manufacturing firms, who saw their input costs rise.

StatCan said real GDP was up 0.3 per cent in June amid broad-based growth across industries. Some tourism and hospitality sectors got a lift from Canada hosting 10 games in the FIFA World Cup in June, the agency said.

The tariff-sensitive manufacturing industry expanded for a third consecutive month in June, StatCan noted.

Back in May, StatCan reported a marginal annualized decline in first-quarter GDP – a second consecutive quarterly drop that fueled some debate over whether Canada was in a recession.

But that quarterly contraction was erased as part of the agency’s regular revisions on Friday. StatCan now says that GDP in the first quarter was actually slightly positive at 0.3 per cent annualized.

The second-quarter GDP report marks the final major data release before the Bank of Canada’s next interest rate announcement on Sept. 2.