By Leila Lemghalef

Canadian women scored lower on financial literacy tests than Canadian men, and are less likely to consider themselves financially knowledgeable, based on new findings released by Statistics Canada.

On questions relating to key issues of interest, inflation, and risk diversification, 15 per cent of women knew the answers, compared to 22 per cent of men.

According to the statistics, the gender difference is especially significant among older Canadians, higher-income workers, and university-educated Canadians, with the exception of younger university grads under the age of 35, where no gender difference was seen in financial literacy.

The survey also underlines that 31 per cent of women said they see themselves as financially knowledgeable, compared to 43 per cent of men.

Men and women in a couple (married or common-law) displayed a gender gap, such that financial literacy was higher among men whose role was more pronounced in terms of looking after household finances, and/or contributing relatively more than the woman to the total household income. Men and women who contributed equally showed no difference in financial literacy.