The income gap has never been so high between households with the highest income and those with the lowest income, according to Statistics Canada.
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This gap reached a “historic summit” of 49% in the first quarter of 2025. This percentage represents the difference between the share of total income that the 40% richer and the part of the 40% the poorest across the country.
“Households with the highest income have benefited from investments, while those with the lowest income displayed a wage bass,” said the government agency in a report published on Wednesday.
This is a significant increase in the wealth gap since the start of the COVVI-19 pandemic in 2020. In comparison, the gap was 43.8% in the first quarter of 2021.
Wages that continue to decrease for low -income citizens are a determining factor in this phenomenon. These people are more likely to lose their jobs due to the economic slowdown. They are also more inclined to see a drop in the value of their real estate.
Conversely, financially affluent individuals were able to take advantage of “the relaxation of borrowing costs and inflation”, which facilitated their ability to put money aside, according to Statistics Canada.
