Canada Inflation Holds at 3% as Grocery Price Growth Slows

Canada's annual inflation rate held at 3 percent in August 2026, matching expectations, as Statistics Canada released on September 14. Consumer prices fell 0.1 percent month over month on an unadjusted basis, while the seasonally adjusted consumer price index, a measure of price changes for goods and services, rose 0.2 percent. Grocery inflation slowed from 3.1 percent to 2.8 percent, falling below headline inflation for the first time since July 2024. Dairy inflation dropped from 3.1 percent to 0.7 percent. Clothing prices moved from a 0.9 percent increase to a 1.1 percent decline. Gasoline prices rose 22.8 percent from a year earlier, down from a 25.7 percent pace in July. Inflation excluding gasoline accelerated from 2.2 percent to 2.4 percent. Travel-tour costs rose 26.1 percent year over year, up from 15.2 percent, partly due to a base-year effect and fuel surcharges, despite a 2.9 percent month-over-month decline. Rent inflation accelerated from 2.5 percent to 2.8 percent, led by Manitoba and Ontario. The Bank of Canada's CPI median held at 2.0 percent and its CPI trimmed measure held at 1.9 percent. Right-rated outlets foregrounded the unchanged 3 percent rate and the slowdown in food price growth. The record lists no left-rated or center-rated headlines.