OTTAWA – Canada’s annual inflation rate cooled off to at least one.4 percent in February, down from 2.0 percent in January, primarily due to a decline in gasoline prices.
Inflation by province and territories
Canada’s national inflation rate was 1.4 percent in February, Statistics Canada says. This is what happened within the provinces and territories. (Previous month in brackets):
– Newfoundland and Labrador, 1.6 percent (2.4)
– Prince Edward Island, 1.1 (1.9)
– Nova Scotia, 1.3 (2.0)
– New Brunswick, 1.8 (2.4)
– Quebec, 1.0 (1.6)
– Ontario, 1.6 (2.0)
– Manitoba, 1.1 (2.1)
– Saskatchewan, 1.4 (2.2)
– Alberta, 1.4 (2.1)
– British Columbia, 1.6 (2.3)
– Whitehorse, Yukon, 1.3 (1.9)
– Yellowknife, N.W.T., 2.0 (2.0)
– Iqaluit, Nunavut, 2.4 (2.4)
Excluding gasoline, Statistic Canada’s consumer price index could have been 1.9 percent recently.
Statistics Canada says food was a major inflationary factor in February, as it continues to be for several months. Consumers paid 3.9 per cent more for food last month compared with February 2015.
In total, six of the eight major components of the consumer price index were up.
Apart from the transportation index that includes gasoline, the only other component to decline was clothing and footwear – down 1.3 per cent.
The core inflation rate, which excludes some volatile items for example gasoline, was 1.9 percent, down from 2.0 percent in January.
Economists had expected Canada’s overall inflation rate to become 1.5 per cent and core inflation to be 2.0 percent.
In a separate report, Statistics Canada reported unexpectedly strong retail sales for January, led by motor vehicle and parts dealers.
Overall, retail sales rose 2.1 per cent to $44.2 billion in January, in contrast to $43.2 billion in December.
The automobile and parts dealers taken into account about one-quarter of January’s retail sales, rising 4.8 per cent from December to $11.6 billion the following month.
Retail sales were in eight provinces in January, with Alberta showing a decline of 0.2 per cent and Prince Edward Island edging down 0.1 percent from December.
The Canadian Press
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