OTTAWA — Canada’s annual inflation rate slowed to 1.4 per cent in February, mostly because of a decline in gasoline prices from the same time last year, Statistics Canada said Friday.
“Gasoline prices were down 13.1 per cent year over year in February, contributing the most to the overall deceleration in consumer prices,” the federal statistics agency said.
The latest inflation reading is a touch softer than economists were expecting, with the consensus estimate for February pegged at 1.5 per cent.
Prices at the supermarket increased 4.4 per cent last month, led by higher prices for fresh vegetables and fresh fruit.
On a monthly basis, prices for fresh vegetables and fresh fruit were down in the Western provinces, while they increased in the rest of Canada, Statscan said.
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