Bank of Canada
Bank of Canada hikes policy interest rate to 1.5 pct, warns of more moves
The Bank of Canada took another step in its hiking cycle, raising its policy interest rate by 50 basis points for a second straight time.
The bank has even warned that it may act “more forcefully” if needed to tackle inflation.
Wednesday’s decision, which brings the benchmark overnight rate to 1.5 per cent, was delivered amid price pressures intensifying.
After keeping its key interest rate near zero since March 2020, the central bank unveiled a pair of rate hikes in March and April - the second was by half a percentage point, the largest in 22 years, reports CTV News.
Governor Tiff Macklem earlier warned of a further increase in rates considering the high inflation.
Macklem said as quoted by CTV News, "The invasion of Ukraine has driven up the prices of energy and other commodities, and the war is further disrupting global supply chains."
"We are also concerned about the broadening of price pressures in Canada," he added.
As a result, Canada's top banks including RBC, BMO have said they will also raise the rate by half a percentage point effective from Thursday.
(Reporting by Suman Das)
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