Canada’s inflation rate jumps to 4 per cent, making the BoC’s next rate decision harder
Canada’s inflation rate has been rising for two consecutive months as underlying price pressures remain stubbornly high, a combination that makes the Bank of Canada’s next interest rate decision more challenging.
Statistics Canada released its latest inflation reading on Tuesday, which shows the annual rate rose to four per cent in August, up from 3.3 per cent in July.
Forecasters were widely anticipating inflation to come in hotter last month due to higher gasoline prices. But Tuesday’s report was even more discouraging than many expected.
“What is the most concerning is that (inflation) accelerated more than (expected) and that we also saw some core measures of inflation that the Bank of Canada track, accelerate as well,” said Andrew Grantham, CIBC’s executive director of economics.