Canada’s inflation rate edged down to 1.8% in December as GST break kicked in

Economists polled by Reuters had expected inflation to come in at 1.9 per cent in December. (Photo by Liang Sen/Xinhua via Getty Images) · Xinhua News Agency via Getty Images

Canada’s annual inflation rate slowed to 1.8 per cent in December, according to Statistics Canada, after rising 1.9 per cent in November. Economists polled by Reuters had expected inflation to remain unchanged at 1.9 per cent last month, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.

The December inflation data coincided with the GST break that went into effect in the middle of the month. Statistics Canada said that food purchased from restaurants and alcoholic beverage purchased from stores contributed the most to the deceleration.

On a monthly basis, CPI decreased 0.4 per cent in December. Seasonally adjusted, CPI rose 0.2 per cent.

Alicja Siekierska is a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow her on X @alicjawithaj.

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