Evening Update: Bank of Canada boosts interest rate by quarter-point, signals pause to further increases

Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:Bank of Canada’s rate increase could be its last for a whileAs widely expected, the Bank of Canada has increased its benchmark interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 4.5 per cent, but said that it expects to hold off further rate hikes. It’s the central bank’s eighth consecutive rate increase in its bid to fight inflation. At a news conference following the announcement, bank Governor Tiff Macklem said Canada could experience “a mild recession,” but the bank does not foresee a significant downturn. Since a meeting of Canada’s health ministers ended in acrimony in November, Ottawa has signaled it is willing to negotiate a 10-year health funding deal. Canada’s main stock index closed with a modest loss, as market players took in what could be the final Bank of Canada rate hike for this economic cycle and began aggressively pricing in the possibility of interest rate cuts before year-end.
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