Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau unveiled on Tuesday a C$4.5 billion ($3.43 billion) package that included doubling the quarterly tax credit sent to low and modest individuals and households to offset sales tax, as well as a C$500 one-time top-up to a housing benefit offered to low-income people who require help with rent.
Although inflation eased slightly in July from its almost four-decade high of 8.1%, the Bank of Canada remains concerned about rising costs and has promised future interest rate hikes.
Scotiabank’s head of capital markets economics, Derek Holt, predicted that stimulus spending will begin in the first and second quarters of 2023.
“These are things that will make a difference in people’s lives right now but they are also sufficiently targeted, that we are confident that they will not contribute to increased inflation,” Trudeau told reporters in St. Andrews, New Brunswick.
[Photo credit to Xinhua Thai]
