Bank of Canada holds interest rate steady at 5%

Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem says the central bank needs to give higher interest rates more time to do their work.

It is keeping its key interest rate steady at five per cent as economists had expected, saying underlying price pressures are persistently high.

The BOC has maintained its key interest rate at the same level since instituting back-to-back hikes in June and July last year.

This means borrowing costs will remain stable for a bit longer.

Most analysts are predicting the Bank of Canada will begin cutting its key interest rate around the middle of the year.

The Canadian Press

– With files from insauga.com