Canada’s inflation rate ticked up to two per cent in October, Statistics Canada said on Tuesday. The consumer price index had previously hit 1.6 per cent in September, thanks to a steep decline in gas prices.
Gas prices fell again in October, though to a lesser extent. With gasoline excluded, all-items inflation came in at 2.2 per cent, the same as in September and August.
Grocery inflation rose at a faster pace in October compared to the same period a year before, outpacing overall inflation for the third month in a row. Higher prices for fresh vegetables and preserved fruit contributed to this trend.
Shelter inflation also cooled to 4.8 per cent on a yearly basis in October as mortgage interest costs and rents grew at a slower pace.
While rent inflation has slowed, rent prices continue to rise, having increased 21.6 per cent compared to October 2021.
Property taxes saw the highest yearly increase since 1992, rising six per cent compared to a 4.3 per cent increase during the same period a year before. Prices increased the most in Newfoundland and Labrador and British Columbia.
“Given that this report follows a string of better news on inflation, and the fact that the GDP and employment data remain to be seen ahead of the December [Bank of Canada] decision, we still see a 50 [basis-point] cut as possible at the next BoC meeting,” wrote Katherine Judge, an economist at CIBC.
More to come.
