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Canada’s annual inflation rate rose to 2.4 per cent in March, Statistics Canada said on Monday.
High prices for energy, especially gas, due to the war in Iran drove inflation higher. Energy prices were 3.9 per cent higher compared to a year ago, and the data agency said March’s 21.2 per cent monthly increase in the price of gasoline was the largest on record.
The impact on inflation would have been higher, Statistics Canada noted, if it weren’t being compared to prices from March 2025 which still included the consumer carbon tax.
Economists widely expected higher gas prices from the war in Iran to drive inflation up. A Reuters poll showed economists expected the annual rate of inflation to accelerate to 2.5 per cent in March from 1.8 per cent in February, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
The federal government’s break on some energy taxes kicks in today however, which aims to help ease the cost of fuelling up for Canadians.
Prices for food at stores rose 4.4 per cent on an annual basis, up from last month. In particular, fresh vegetable prices jumped 7.8 per cent year-over-year in March, which Statistics Canada chalked up to recent tough growing conditions for cucumbers, peppers and celery.
More to come.