Inflation rate record ‘not surprising’: UW economics professor

By Christine Clark

A local economics professor says things will get worse before they get better when it comes to Canada's rising inflation rate.

Statistics Canada says the annual rate of inflation edged up to 6.8 per cent in April — the highest since January 1991.

Jean-Paul Lam is an associate professor at the University of Waterloo, he tells The Mike Farwell Show there are many contributing factors to the high inflation rate, such as continued supply chain issues due to COVID-19, the war in Ukraine and disruptions in food supply.

“I wouldn't be surprised if the inflation rate goes even higher in the next few months because we haven't seen the effects of higher wages and more price increases, especially in food and in energy, feeding into inflation.”

The results for April came as Canadians paid 9.7 per cent more for food alone, compared with a year ago, the largest increase since September 1981.

Breaking down the numbers even further, the cost of fresh fruit was up 10 per cent, fresh vegetables gained 8.2 per cent and meat rose 10.1 per cent. The cost of bread rose 12.2 per cent, while pasta gained 19.6 per cent and rice added 7.4 per cent.

Lam says these prices are increasing at an incredibly fast and unusual rate.

“Between 2010 and 2020, so a ten-year period, we have had only five episodes of food prices increasing five or more per cent. Since December 2021, we've already had five of these.” 

The inflation rate was the highest since January 1991 when the annual rate was 6.9 per cent.
 

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