OTTAWA: Canada fell into recession in the first half of the year, posting its weakest results since the 2008 global financial crisis, government data confirmed on Tuesday. The figures add to escalating fears about the health of the global economy, with world stock markets plunging farther on Tuesday as more gloomy evidence emerged of China’s economic slowdown — China has been a major engine of global growth.

The grim numbers were also bad news for Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper, just weeks before elections. The Canadian economy contracted 0.5 per cent in second quarter after retreating 0.8 per cent in previous three months, as per Statistics Canada.