Bank of Canada News

The Bank of Canada today decided to keep its target overnight lending rate at 1%. Some forecasters were predicting a rate increase this month, but the Bank decided that, given strong Canadian economic activity, inflation below the target rate of 2% and the somewhat uncertain international economic situation (especially as regards NAFTA renegotiations), there was insufficient justification to raise the rate. An increase in December is still a possibility. You can read the announcement here.

In its October Monetary Policy Report (MPR), the Bank is projecting Canadian GDP growth of 3.1% in 2017, 2.1% in 2018 and 1.5% in 2019. Growth, which has been strong in the first half of 2017, is expected to moderate somewhat in the last two quarters.  Business investment, which includes investment in non-residential construction, is expected to remain robust over the three-year projection horizon. You can access the full MPR here.