LONDON: Manitoba’s annual inflation rate eased in November thanks in part to a decline in natural gas prices, Statistics Canada said today.
In its latest monthly consumer price index report, the federal agency said Manitoba’s annual rate dipped to 1.8 per cent from 1.9 per cent in October. The decline came on the heels of a 0.6 per cent jump in the rate from September to October. Statistics Canada said Manitoba was the only province to record a decline in its annual rate in November.
“This deceleration was partly attributable to the natural gas index, which fell 11 per cent in the 12 months to November compared with a 1.9 per cent decrease in the previous month,” the agency added.
A decline in the annual inflation rate means the cost of the consumer goods and services tracked each month by Statistics Canada rose at a slower pace in the 12 months up to November than in the 12 months up to October.
But an annual inflation rate of 1.8 per cent still means those goods and services cost 1.8 per cent more last month than in November 2014. The agency said the main contributor to the increase was a 2.5 per cent year-over-year rise in the cost of new passenger vehicles.
Canada’s annual inflation rate, on the other hand, picked up the pace last month to hit 1.4 per cent. That moved it a little closer to the central bank’s ideal target of 2.0 per cent, Statistics Canada said. The statistical agency’s November inflation reading was up from just 1.0 per cent in October.
The latest national consumer price index shows higher prices for food and shelter were among the biggest contributors to the increase. Prices rose in seven of the survey’s eight major categories.
The index found that food prices were up 3.4 per cent compared to a year earlier, thanks in large part to the higher costs of meat and fresh vegetables. The category of fresh or frozen meat, excluding poultry, was up six per cent, while beef alone climbed 8.1 per cent. The report says the cost of fresh vegetables rose by 10.9 per cent following big, year-over-year increases in the prices of tomatoes and lettuce.
The lower cost of transportation, meanwhile, put downward pressure on the inflation rate as gasoline prices fell last month by 10.6 per cent compared to a year earlier. The agency says consumer prices rose in every province last month compared to the year before.
The Bank of Canada’s core inflation rate, which excludes some volatile items such as gasoline, was 2.0 per cent last month, compared with 2.1 per cent in October. The core rate is closely followed by the Bank of Canada. On a month-over-month basis, the consumer price index crept up 0.2 per cent in November, which matched October’s increase.
Statistics Canada also released October data for wholesale trade, which fell 0.6 per cent in Canada to $54.7 billion. That was the fourth-straight monthly drop for Canada. Manitoba’s wholesale sales fell by 1.5 per cent to $1.48 billion from $1.50 billion in September, the agency added.
