Canada’s inflation rate continued to ease in March, a signal that the country’s tightening monetary policy has curbed price growth, despite the central bank’s recent pause in interest rate hikes.
Consumer prices rose 4.3 percent in March from a year ago, following an annual increase of 5.2 percent in February, Statistics Canada said Tuesday, reports the Financial Times. This represented the least amount of growth in the yearly rate since August 2021, which tallied with analysts’ predictions.
StatCan attributed the decline to lower gasoline prices and slower growth in food and durable goods prices. Excluding the volatile food and energy sectors, prices rose 4.5 percent in March, following a 4.8 percent increase in February.
The Bank of Canada has paused interest rate hikes at its last two meetings.
Inflation in Germany was 7.8 percent in March
Inflation in Germany fell less than expected in March, despite a sharp drop in energy costs, dampening hopes for a quick easing of broader price pressures across the eurozone.
Harmonized consumer price growth in Germany in March was 7.8 percent year-on-year, down significantly from 9.3 percent last month but higher than the 7.5 percent forecast by economists in a Reuters poll, the Financial Times reports.
The Destatis statistical office published the estimate of inflation in Germany a few hours after the report that inflation in March in Spain was almost halved, from six to 3.1 percent. The European Central Bank considers pausing interest rate hikes at its May meeting.
German government bonds sold off after the release of inflation data. Yields on the two-year debt rose 0.08 percent to 2.7 percent, as investors forecast borrowing costs in the eurozone will have to rise further.
The main factor in the decline in the consumer price index in Germany was the drop in energy price inflation from 19.1 percent in February to 3.5 percent in March, according to Destatis.
