Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
Inflation in Canada is cooling faster than expected, but economists don't expect the Bank of Canada to back down from its fight just yet.
The annual inflation rate slowed to 7.0 per cent in August, Statistics Canada said Tuesday in its latest monthly consumer price index (CPI) report.
Prior to the release of the report, RBC forecast inflation in August was 7.2 per cent.
The slowdown was largely driven by the price of gasoline falling, however, Canadians are still feeling the pinch at the grocery store. Food prices rose at the fastest rate since 1981 in August, with prices up 10.8 per cent compared with a year ago.
Excluding gasoline prices, year-over-year inflation was 6.3 per cent, making August the first month since June 2021 where annual inflation excluding gasoline has slowed.
"This is about as good of an inflation report as we can hope for," said BMO's managing director of Canadian rates and macro strategist Benjamin Reitzes in an email to clients.
The Bank of Canada will be paying close attention to its preferred measures of core inflation, which tend to be less volatile and help the bank see through temporary changes in the consumer price index. Those measures all point to a slowdown in annual inflation in August as well.
Randall Bartlett, senior director of Canadian economists at Desjardins, said while the latest numbers are good news, the Bank of Canada will likely continue down the path of higher interest rates.
"We don't think this report suggests that the Bank of Canada is close to calling mission accomplished yet," he said. "But it certainly is good news, and suggests that inflation is heading in the right direction."
The Bank of Canada has been laser-focused on bringing down inflation expectations, which were elevated in recent surveys. If people's expectations start coming down, Bartlett said that may influence the bank's future rate decisions and general tone on inflation.
Earlier this month, the Bank of Canada raised its key interest rate for the fifth time this year. With the three-quarters of a percentage point hike, the bank's key rate now sits at 3.25 per cent.
The bank is set to make its next rate announcement on Oct. 26 and has warned more interest rate hikes are needed to bring inflation to its two per cent target.
TD is expecting the Bank of Canada to hike rates again in October and bring its key rate to four per cent by the end of the year.
The latest report on inflation also shows the gap between inflation and wages is narrowing, with average hourly wages up 5.4 per cent in August compared with 7.0 per cent inflation.
Despite the slowdown in headline inflation, the cost of living remains stubbornly high for Canadians.
On a monthly basis, overall consumer prices were slightly lower in August than in July.
Statistics Canada said the 0.3 per cent decline in the CPI from July to August is the largest monthly decline since the early months of the pandemic.
As grocery prices soared in August, prices for bakery goods were up 15.4 per cent while prices for fresh fruit was 13.2 per cent higher than a year ago.
Statistics Canada attributes the acceleration in food prices to continued supply chain disruptions, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, extreme weather, and higher input costs.
As for the slowdown in overall inflation, the federal agency said transportation and shelter prices drove the deceleration in consumer prices.
Gas prices were up 22.1 per cent in August compared with a year ago, but down 18.8 per cent since June.
Shelter costs fell slightly from July to August, but remained 6.6 per cent higher than a year ago.
Here's what happened in the provinces (previous month in brackets):
The agency also released rates for major cities, but cautioned that figures may have fluctuated widely because they are based on small statistical samples (previous month in brackets):
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 20, 2022
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
Pius Suter scored with 1:39 left and the Vancouver Canucks advanced to the second round of the NHL playoffs with a 1-0 victory over the Nashville Predators on Friday night in Game 6.
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
A Quebec man who pleaded guilty to threatening Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier François Legault has been sentenced to 20 months in jail.
RCMP say human remains found in a rural area in central Saskatchewan may have been there for a decade or more.
A source close to singer Britney Spears tells CNN that the pop star is 'home and safe' after she had a 'major fight' with her boyfriend on Wednesday night at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood.
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.
Drew Carey took over as host of 'The Price Is Right' and hopes he’s there for life. 'I'm not going anywhere,' he told 'Entertainment Tonight' of the job he took over from longtime host Bob Barker in 2007.
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.