Advertisement

Alberta’s surging electricity costs helped fuel national inflation jump in July: StatsCan

Click to play video: 'Inflation jumps to 3.3% in July, outside Bank of Canada’s target range'
Inflation jumps to 3.3% in July, outside Bank of Canada’s target range
WATCH ABOVE: Annual inflation rose to 3.3 per cent nationally in July, Statistics Canada said, putting it outside the Bank of Canada’s one-to-three per cent target range. That’s up from June’s inflation rate of 2.8 per cent. – Aug 15, 2023

Statistics Canada says a spike in the amount Albertans paid for electricity last month counteracted an overall decline in energy prices in July — and was one of the key reasons cited by the agency as the overall inflation rate ticked up.

The agency says energy prices were down 8.2 per cent in July on a year-over-year basis, compared with 14.6 per cent in June.

That was driven both by gasoline prices falling less dramatically from prices a year ago, along with electricity prices rising at a faster pace in July than they did in June.

Yet the price of electricity was up 11.7 per cent last month compared with 5.8 per cent in June, with the gain attributed to a 127.8 per cent increase in Alberta electricity prices.

Get expert insights, Q&A on markets, housing, inflation, and personal finance information delivered to you every Saturday.

Get weekly money news

Get expert insights, Q&A on markets, housing, inflation, and personal finance information delivered to you every Saturday.
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

Statistics Canada notes Alberta’s electricity costs are often volatile and were influenced by high summer demand.

Story continues below advertisement

July’s costs also rose compared with last year due to the province phasing out temporary measures that helped keep energy costs lower before the summer.

Eligible Albertans received a total of $500 in monthly rebates on their power bills from July 2022 to April 2023, with the federal agency noting prices fell 24.4 per cent month-over-month when the program was first introduced last summer.

The province’s electricity rate cap of 13.5 cents per kilowatt hour, applied for those on a Regulated Rate Option from January to March 2023, also kept prices lower in the earlier part of the year.

Click to play video: 'Alberta regulated electricity rates set to increase'
Alberta regulated electricity rates set to increase

Sponsored content

AdChoices