OTTAWA—The Bank of Canada held its main interest rate steady at 5% after back-to-back rate rises in June and July, saying the economy has shifted into a weaker phase and labor-market pressures have eased.
Nevertheless, the central bank Wednesday said it remained concerned “about the persistence of underlying inflationary pressures,” and is prepared to raise rates again should conditions not improve. Along with the U.S. Federal Reserve, the Bank of Canada has been among the most aggressive developed-world central banks in lifting rates higher to cool inflation, having done so 10 times since March of last year for a total of 4.75 percentage points.
