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While the CPI is the most commonly used measure to track inflation, it is not fully consistent with a true cost-of-living index (COLI). Although the official treatment of durable goods and housing in the CPI represents an acceptable compromise in the current environment of low and stable inflation, Sabourin and Duguay suggest that it would be worthwhile to consider treating housing and durables in the same way and bringing the actual CPI closer to a COLI. This could be accomplished by employing an enhanced user-cost approach to calculate the imputed cost of the services provided by the use of durable goods or housing.

The global economy has shown greater strength than was anticipated at the time of the November Report.

Canada’s new and more secure $5 and $10 polymer bank notes were unveiled today at the Bank of Canada’s Ottawa head office, and from aboard the International Space Station.

The Bank of Canada has announced the entry into circulation of the new $5 and $10 polymer bank notes. Starting today, these final two notes in the new polymer Frontiers series will be available at financial institutions across Canada.

This section includes information and products that explain how blind and partially-sighted Canadians can determine the denominations of bank notes.

Results of the first-quarter 2026 survey, conducted before the war in the Middle East, show that concerns about high prices and economic uncertainty continue to weigh on consumers’ spending plans. Even so, consumers, particularly those working in trade-sensitive sectors, became less negative about spending than in the previous quarter, and the CSCE indicator rose slightly reflecting this improvement in spending plans. Concerns about job losses remain elevated and increased among workers in sectors where artificial intelligence poses a greater risk of task replacement. Results of a special survey conducted after the war in the Middle East began suggest that most households expect the conflict to weaken the Canadian economy and raise prices.

Gordon Thiessen, Governor of the Bank of Canada, delivered the HERMES-Glendon Lecture at York University, Toronto, in March 1995. The speech focussed on the interrelationships of uncertainty and the transmission of monetary policy to the economy. It looked at how the various types of uncertainty influence the behaviour of economic actors, and at how uncertainty affects the transmission of monetary policy through the economy. The first part of the lecture outlines the Bank of Canada's view of the transmission mechanism, with considerable attention paid to the role of uncertainty. In the second part, the various ways in which the Bank has tried to reduce uncertainty are discussed. The various kinds of uncertainty that impinge on the economy and on the policy process are addressed.

The neutral rate of interest is important for central banks because it helps measure the stance of monetary policy. We present updated estimates of the neutral rate in Canada using the most recent data. We expect the COVID-19 pandemic to significantly affect the fundamental drivers of the Canadian neutral rate.