Bank of Canada cuts key interest rate to 4.25%

The Bank of Canada lowered its key interest rate to 4.25 per cent on Wednesday, the third consecutive cut since June. 

The central bank said the reduction comes after “continued easing in broad inflationary pressures.”

The key interest rate was lowered by another 25 basis points, following a pattern established earlier this summer when rates were cut to 4.75 per cent in June and 4.5 per cent in July. 

This third cut was widely anticipated by economists. Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem had previously signalled that more rate cuts would follow July’s reduction as long as inflation continued to slow.

In July, Canada’s annual inflation rate dropped to 2.5 per cent, down from 2.7 per cent in June, Statistics Canada said in August. It’s the lowest it has been since March 2021, when inflation began to climb amid pandemic pressures and supply disruptions.