BoC’s Macklem keeps rate hike door open, downplays fiscal risks
Bank of Canada (BoC) Governor Tiff Macklem appeared in the House of Commons, saying there may be a need to raise rates further.
Macklem added that in the current circumstances he does not think fiscal policy is making it harder to bring inflation down.
Canadian Dollar Price Today
The table below shows the percentage change of Canadian Dollar (CAD) against listed major currencies today. Canadian Dollar was the strongest against the Australian Dollar.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.02% | -0.01% | -0.35% | 0.22% | 0.68% | 0.19% | -0.26% | |
| EUR | -0.02% | -0.03% | -0.37% | 0.19% | 0.68% | 0.17% | -0.30% | |
| GBP | 0.01% | 0.03% | -0.34% | 0.22% | 0.71% | 0.21% | -0.26% | |
| JPY | 0.35% | 0.37% | 0.34% | 0.56% | 1.03% | 0.52% | 0.08% | |
| CAD | -0.22% | -0.19% | -0.22% | -0.56% | 0.48% | -0.03% | -0.48% | |
| AUD | -0.68% | -0.68% | -0.71% | -1.03% | -0.48% | -0.49% | -0.98% | |
| NZD | -0.19% | -0.17% | -0.21% | -0.52% | 0.03% | 0.49% | -0.44% | |
| CHF | 0.26% | 0.30% | 0.26% | -0.08% | 0.48% | 0.98% | 0.44% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Canadian Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent CAD (base)/USD (quote).
Bank of Canada FAQs
The Bank of Canada (BoC), based in Ottawa, is the institution that sets interest rates and manages monetary policy for Canada. It does so at eight scheduled meetings a year and ad hoc emergency meetings that are held as required. The BoC primary mandate is to maintain price stability, which means keeping inflation at between 1-3%. Its main tool for achieving this is by raising or lowering interest rates. Relatively high interest rates will usually result in a stronger Canadian Dollar (CAD) and vice versa. Other tools used include quantitative easing and tightening.
In extreme situations, the Bank of Canada can enact a policy tool called Quantitative Easing. QE is the process by which the BoC prints Canadian Dollars for the purpose of buying assets – usually government or corporate bonds – from financial institutions. QE usually results in a weaker CAD. QE is a last resort when simply lowering interest rates is unlikely to achieve the objective of price stability. The Bank of Canada used the measure during the Great Financial Crisis of 2009-11 when credit froze after banks lost faith in each other’s ability to repay debts.
Quantitative tightening (QT) is the reverse of QE. It is undertaken after QE when an economic recovery is underway and inflation starts rising. Whilst in QE the Bank of Canada purchases government and corporate bonds from financial institutions to provide them with liquidity, in QT the BoC stops buying more assets, and stops reinvesting the principal maturing on the bonds it already holds. It is usually positive (or bullish) for the Canadian Dollar.