Canadian Press

By The Canadian Press

Annual inflation rate turned negative in April

May 20, 2020 | 7:00 AM

OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says the annual inflation rate turned negative in April as the economy came to a standstill in the first full month of the pandemic.

The agency reports the consumer price index for April fell 0.2 per cent compared with a year ago as gasoline prices plunged by 39.3 per cent, the largest year-over-year decline on record.

The overall drop was the first year-over-year decline in the CPI since September 2009.

The reading compared with a year-over-year increase of 0.9 per cent in March when the pandemic began.

Economists on average expected a reading of -0.1 per cent for April, according to financial markets data firm Refinitiv.

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But other prices for other consumer goods were up, particularly for cleaning products, toilet paper and food, the agency is reporting this morning.

(The Canadian Press)