Canada's annual inflation rate rose to 3.1% in September 2026, up from 3.0% in August, Statistics Canada reported on Monday — slightly below the 3.2% increase economists had forecast. On a monthly basis, consumer prices rose 0.1%, or 0.4% on a seasonally adjusted basis.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) measures how much more households pay for a fixed basket of everyday goods and services — food, fuel, housing and more — compared with a year earlier.
Gasoline did most of the pushing: prices at the pump jumped 27.8% year over year. Without gasoline, inflation was far tamer at 2.2%.
Canada CPI, September 2026 — Headline +3.1% YoY (forecast 3.2%, previous 3.0%) • +0.1% month over month • Gasoline +27.8% YoY • Excluding gasoline +2.2% • Core measures (trim & median) averaged 1.85%
Underlying inflation cooled. The Bank of Canada's preferred core measures, CPI-trim and CPI-median, averaged 1.85% year over year — their slowest pace in six years — while CPI-common rose 2.4%.
This is the last inflation report before the Bank of Canada's October 28 rate decision. With the headline close to expectations and core inflation cooling, markets broadly expect the central bank to hold its policy rate at 2.25%, though the final decision rests on the Bank's own assessment.
Sources: Statistics Canada — The Daily, Consumer Price Index, September 2026 (released 19 October 2026); Reuters and Dow Jones reporting.