The Financial Post reports in its Saturday, Aug. 30, edition that Canada's economy contracted by 0.4 per cent in the second quarter of this year, according to Statistics Canada. The Post's Naimul Karim writes that this decline was attributed to significant decreases in goods exports, largely due to U.S. tariffs, and reduced business investment in machinery and equipment. On a per-capita basis, gross domestic product also fell by 0.4 per cent. Annually, the economy shrank 1.6 per cent in the second quarter, a slowdown from 2-per-cent growth in the first quarter of 2025. This result was below the consensus projection of 0.7 per cent but aligned with the Bank of Canada's July forecast, according to CIBC economist Andrew Grantham. He attributed the contraction to a decline in exports and a reversal of first quarter front-loading activity. The weaker-than-expected GDP numbers could drive the BOC to cut interest rates in September, after keeping the rates steady at 2.75 per cent in its last three meetings, Desjardins economist Royce Mendes said Friday. Mr. Mendes is maintaining his forecast for the BOC to start cutting rates in September due to a second quarter headline miss and weak momentum in the third quarter.