
February inflation data set to show end of federal tax holiday
OTTAWA — Statistics Canada is set to release inflation figures for February today.
Most economists expect inflation picked up as the federal government’s temporary tax break on a number of household staples came to an end in February.
The two-month GST holiday cooled prices in December and January, but inflation is forecast to rise again as the sales tax returned mid-month.
Economists polled by Reuters ahead of Tuesday expect the annual rate of inflation rose to 2.2 per cent in February, up from 1.9 per cent in January.