Economic data since January has increased the central bank’s confidence that inflation will continue to slow even as economic growth picks up, governor Tiff Macklem said.
“I realize that what most Canadians want to know is when we will lower our policy interest rate. What do we need to see to be convinced it’s time to cut?” Macklem said. Economists were widely expecting the central bank to hold its key rate on Wednesday and deliver a rate cut at its next policy announcement in June.
The central bank has been particularly focused on measures of core inflation, which gauge underlying price pressures by stripping out volatile price movements.