Inflation rate falls to 0.1 per cent as price growth slows, StatCan reports
Posted Aug 19, 2020 7:58 am.
Last Updated Aug 19, 2020 9:25 am.
OTTAWA – Statistics Canada said the consumer price index was up 0.1 per cent compared with a year ago, as gasoline prices were down nearly 15 per cent.
Excluding the drop in gasoline prices, the inflation barometer would have increased at an annual rate of 0.7 per cent, matching the same reading for June.
The average economist estimate had been for a year-over-year increase of 0.5 per cent for July, according to financial data firm Refinitiv.
Consumer Price Index, July 2020: The #CPI rose 0.1% on a year-over-year basis in July. This month’s CPI is accompanied by a technical supplement that is available in the Prices Analytical Series. https://t.co/c7ls1MJgXc pic.twitter.com/sbwojF06xF
— Statistics Canada (@StatCan_eng) August 19, 2020
The statistics agency said the slower pace of price growth was broad-based, spanning goods and services.
Statistics Canada said air travel prices fell in July by 8.6 per cent, the first year-over-year decline since December 2015.
It said the result was due to airlines offering incentives for people to travel again, including reduced fees, discounts and promotions even as many flights remained cancelled or suspended because of the pandemic.
