The Bank of Canada governor Stephen Poloz said the nation is moving toward a positive note after its long adjustment to a sudden drop in oil prices. Although, he also commented that there are parts of the country that are still weak. He also addressed to the banking committee of the Senate that they cannot move too fast despite the tendency of the interest rates to go up from the current low levels as this may disrupt financial stability. It has been three times since the last rate hike in July as the economy progresses and the unemployment rate stayed in a 40-year low. Rates were held steady at 1.25 percent last week. Market operators anticipate a 70 percent chance of another hike in July. Since the oil price crisis in 2014, Canada was hit hard being a major exporter of crude oil. A senator criticized the rhetoric of Poloz saying a “fairly rosy” outlook on April 18. He answered that this description denotes a “positive” statement. “For the economy as a whole, it has put the adjustments to the oil price shock behind us, but we still have softness in several areas of the country,” added Poloz. At the beginning of his statement, Poloz mentioned that higher interest rates are wanted but some policy accommodation is necessary to keep the inflation monitored. They are already getting ready for raising the rates but they are still keeping an eye on the consumer debt, which would almost hit near-record levels. He agrees that there are risks in “moving too quickly” since there is tumultuous debt at play and of all things, the least they wanted is affect the financial stability which is more important if acting on a quicker phase. Nonetheless, Poloz is in positive spirit about the economy which if looked back, one of their concerns in the lack of competitiveness and uncertainty regarding the NAFTA trade deal since the last talk to the committee in November 2017.
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