Bank of Canada increases key interest rate to 5%

The Bank of Canada announced Wednesday that it will once again be raising interest rates across the country to five per cent.

The raise has been highly anticipated by economic forecasters despite interest rates being at the highest levels since 2008.

The Bank says that the hike was driven by an increased demand in the economy fueled by strong customer spending and the continued elevation in prices.

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There hasn’t been confirmation of whether the Bank plans on another raise anytime soon.

Inflation rates have fallen considerably since its peak at 8.1 per cent last summer, yet grocery store prices still rose nine per cent.

The Bank expects inflation rates to stall around three per-cent for the next year.

Stronger economic growth is also expected this year both globally and domestically. It revised its projection for real gross domestic product growth in Canada to 1.8 per cent for 2023, up from 1.1 per cent.

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