The Central Bank of Canada raised interest rates in its meeting moments ago by a quarter of a point to reach 0.50%, as expected.

The interest statement issued by the Bank stated that the Russian invasion of Ukraine raised the uncertainty in the markets, pushing the prices of oil and commodities to rise sharply, which leads to an increase in global inflation rates.

The economic data issued by Canada came in general agreement with the expectations contained in the monetary policy report for the month of January, where the economic growth came in the fourth quarter of last year at 6.7% and this is stronger than the expectations of the Bank, which confirms that the economic recession has been absorbed.

Inflation rates represented in the consumer price index are currently at 5.1%, and it is still above the target range. The invasion caused increased upward pressure, and accordingly, the bank expects inflation to rise in the near term compared to its January expectations.

the bank believes that interest rates will need to rise further in light of the current inflationary pressures in order to achieve the bank’s inflation target.

The Canadian dollar is recording declines against the US dollar and is trading at 1.2690 levels.ش