Canada Interest Rate

Last Release

Mar 08, 2023

Actual

4.5

Units In

4.5

Frequency

Daily

Next Release

Apr 12, 2023

Time to Release

20 Days 1 Hours

Highest	Lowest	Average	Date Range	Source
16 Feb 1991	0.25 Apr 2009	5.78 %	1990-2023	Bank of Canada

In Canada, benchmark interest rate is set by the Bank of Canada's (BoC) Governing Council. The official interest rate is the Overnight Rate. Since 1996 the Bank Rate is set at the upper limit of an operating band for the money market overnight rate. Previously, from March 1980 until February 1996 the Bank Rate was set at 25 basis points above the weekly average tender rate for 3-month Treasury bills.

Latest Updates

The Bank of Canada held the target for its overnight rate unchanged at 4.5% in its March 2023 meeting, as previously signaled, and stated that it should continue to hold the rate at the current level should economic conditions develop broadly in line with expectations in the latest Monetary Policy Report. The decision followed a 25bps interest rate hike in January and marked the first halt in the tightening campaign for major monetary authorities, as the BoC opted to shift its priority and support growth. Canadian GDP growth stalled in the fourth quarter of 2022, lower than projections from the central bank. In the meantime, lower energy prices support the slowdown in consumer prices, strengthening the case for a pause in the bank’s tightening cycle. Inflation slowed to 5.9% in January since hitting its peak of 8.1% in June, and the bank continues to expect inflation to fall to 3% in the middle of the year.