Statistics
Canada reported on Wednesday the country’s consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.3
percent m-o-m in May, following a 0.7 percent m-o-m drop in the previous month.
On the y-o-y basis, Canada’s inflation rate decreased 0.4 percent last month after declining 0.2 percent m-o-m in April. That marked the biggest y-o-y decline in consumer prices since September 2009.
Economists had
predicted inflation would increase 0.7 percent m-o-m but be unchanged y-o-y in May.
According to
the report, prices fell in four of the eight major components on a y-o-y basis,
with transportation prices (-3.0 percent y-o-y) contributing the most to the
all-items decline. At the same time, food prices (+3.1 percent y-o-y) remained
high in May, recording the largest y-o-y gain among the major components.