-Bank of Canada
Canada's annual inflation rate remained intact in June, suggesting that the recent uptick in Canada's currency, tied to a rise in crude-oil prices, is now having the reverse effect. According to the report from Statistics Canada, June consumer price inflation CPI rose 0.2% from the previous month, below the 0.1% increase expected and below May's 0.4% rise. Year-on-year, core CPI advanced 2.1%, above forecasts for a 2.0% rise and compared to May's reading of 2.1%. On a month-over-month basis, headline consumer prices climbed 0.2% in June, down from the 0.4% rise, while core inflation posted a zero growth, compared to May's 0.3% gain, the agency said. Analysts had expected a 0.1% rise and 0.1% fall, respectively. On a seasonally adjusted basis, Canada's CPI increased 0.2% from May.
Meanwhile, a separate report showed that Canadian retail sales rose unexpectedly in May, a positive indicator for an economy continuing to struggle with lower commodity prices. The value of retail sales climbed 0.2% to a seasonally adjusted 44.28 billion Canadian dollars in May, Statistics Canada reported. Market expectations were for retail sales to remain unchanged from the previous month, according to economists at Royal Bank of Canada.
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