Critical-mineral production contributed $26.3 billion to Canada’s economy in 2024

Canada’s critical-mineral production contributed $26.3 billion in nominal gross domestic product in 2024, or about 0.9% of the national economy, according to new Statistics Canada estimates.

The figures appeared in The Daily released October 8, 2026. Statistics Canada said real GDP associated with critical-mineral production increased 8.2% in 2024 after declining 0.8% in 2023.

Among the groups highlighted in the release, platinum-group-metal production rose 16.7% in real terms. Production of unrefined prioritized critical minerals increased 13.9%. These are industry-level measures, not commodity-price forecasts or investment recommendations.

The estimates provide a benchmark for the size and recent direction of a sector that includes minerals used in batteries, electronics, clean-energy equipment and defence applications. Statistics Canada’s release reports 2024 activity even though the publication date is October 8, 2026.

Illustrative mining photo: Dominik Vanyi / Unsplash Licence. It does not depict a specific Canadian critical-mineral operation; cropped and resized for publication.