Canada's Inflation Surges to 2.4% in March

0:00It's April 20th, I'm Cory with the story. This is Canada News today, driven by AI. Canada's inflation rate jumped to 2.4% in March, up from 1.8% the month before, mostly because gasoline prices, shot up over 21% the biggest monthly spike on record. That came from oil supply issues tied to the conflict in the Middle East. Energy prices overall climbed 3.9% after dropping sharply in February, and stats Canada pointed out that March numbers still baked, and the consumer carbon tax, which got acts in April. Food prices at stores rose 4.4%, with fresh veggies like cucumbers and peppers seeing big jumps from supply shortages abroad, wow. Restaurant meals and booze slowed down a bit, thanks to last year's tax breaks. Economists say core inflation stayed tame at around 1.4%, showing limited spillover from gas so far, but they're eyeing April's data. To spike headline numbers near 3% without that carbon tax drag, looking ahead, oil still

1:03weigh up from last year, so energy could keep things hot through summer, though economic slack might let the Bank of Canada. Hold steady on rates into next year.