Canadians Are Increasing Spending on Some Items and Cutting Back on Others Compared to Last Year

September 18, 2024 TruthUSA

According to Statistics Canada, the consumer price index (CPI) in Canada only rose by 2 percent from August 2023 to August 2024, marking the slowest increase in prices in over three years.

The deceleration in inflation is partly attributed to lower gasoline prices, as stated in a Sept. 17 release by StatCan.

Despite this, Canadians are still grappling with high mortgage interest costs and rental prices, keeping the CPI elevated, as mentioned in the release.

In August, the CPI decreased by 0.2 percent month-over-month following a 0.4 percent increase in July.

Consumers observed lower prices for various items like airfare, clothing, footwear, and travel tours, according to StatCan.

Excluding the rise in mortgage interest, the year-over-year increase in the CPI was 1.2 percent, based on the release.

What Costs More

Housing costs, particularly mortgage interest rates, continue to be significant contributors to the rising CPI.

Mortgage Interest Rates

August saw an 18.8 percent year-over-year increase in mortgage interest costs, marking the 12th consecutive month of slower growth since peaking at 30.9 percent in August 2023, according to StatCan.

Despite a slower growth rate, mortgage interest rates still play a major role in the overall price increase since December 2022, according to the organization.

Groceries

In August 2024, Canadians paid 2.4 percent more for food, as indicated by StatCan.

Dairy items saw a 3.3 percent increase, while fresh fruit experienced a 1.5 percent rise.

Additionally, other increases in grocery prices include a 1.94 percent rise in meat and a 1.51 percent increase in bakery or cereal items.

Other Increases

According to StatCan data, consumers have also seen price hikes in various other categories such as:

Rental housing, 7.37 percent
Property taxes, 2.43 percent

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What Costs Less

One area where consumers are saving money is in the price of gasoline.

Gasoline

Gasoline prices fell by over 5 percent year-over-year in August, following a 1.9 percent increase in July, according to StatCan data.

In August 2023, gas prices had risen by 4.6 percent monthly, but by August 2024, they had dropped by 2.6 percent, marking the third decrease in four months, as per StatCan.

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