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The Bank of Canada's policy rate rose to 2.5% at the end of October 2026

The Bank of Canada's policy rate was 2.5% at the end of October 2026, up 0.25 percentage points from 2.25% at the end of September.

Published 2 min read

  • 2026-092.25%
  • 2026-102.5%
Canada central bank policy rate (month-end) · Bank of Canada

Canada Central bank policy rate →

What changed

For households, the basic cost of borrowing set by the Bank of Canada went up this autumn. The policy rate stood at 2.5% at the end of October 2026.

Sources for this paragraph (1)
  • F1 Canada central bank policy rate (month-end) · 2.5% · 2026-10 · Bank of Canada

At the end of September 2026 the same rate was 2.25%. The change from the previous month was 0.25 percentage points.

Sources for this paragraph (2)
  • F2 Canada central bank policy rate (month-end) · 2.25% · 2026-09 · Bank of Canada
  • F3 Change from previous period (percentage points) · 0.25pp · 2026-10 · Bank of Canada

September and October side by side

The comparison here uses one measure, the month-end policy rate, in two consecutive months. It moved from 2.25% in September 2026 to 2.5% in October 2026. That is a rise of 0.25 percentage points over the previous month, not over 12 months.

Sources for this paragraph (3)
  • F1 Canada central bank policy rate (month-end) · 2.5% · 2026-10 · Bank of Canada
  • F2 Canada central bank policy rate (month-end) · 2.25% · 2026-09 · Bank of Canada
  • F3 Change from previous period (percentage points) · 0.25pp · 2026-10 · Bank of Canada

What other official figures show

Several price measures for September 2026 give background. Each is a separate statistic, so they are listed here one by one rather than ranked against each other.

Sources for this paragraph (3)

Consumer price inflation, measured as the 12-month change, was 3.09% in September 2026.

Sources for this paragraph (1)

Food price inflation, also a 12-month change, was 2.18% in September 2026.

Sources for this paragraph (1)

Shelter prices in the consumer price index showed a 12-month change of 1.75% in September 2026.

Sources for this paragraph (1)

The new housing price index had a 12-month change of -2.04% in September 2026. That means prices on this index were lower than a year earlier.

Sources for this paragraph (1)

On jobs and income, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 6.5% in September 2026. Average weekly earnings showed a 12-month change of 3.68% in August 2026.

Sources for this paragraph (2)

For the wider economy, annual GDP growth was 1.74% in 2025.

Sources for this paragraph (1)

What it means for people in Canada

The policy rate is the Bank of Canada's benchmark. A higher benchmark is the starting point lenders look at when setting many borrowing costs. These figures show the benchmark itself, not the rate any one household pays.

Sources for this paragraph (2)
  • F1 Canada central bank policy rate (month-end) · 2.5% · 2026-10 · Bank of Canada
  • F3 Change from previous period (percentage points) · 0.25pp · 2026-10 · Bank of Canada

Households facing a mortgage renewal or carrying variable-rate debt may want to know where the benchmark sits. At the end of October 2026 it was 2.5%, compared with 2.25% a month earlier.

Sources for this paragraph (2)
  • F1 Canada central bank policy rate (month-end) · 2.5% · 2026-10 · Bank of Canada
  • F2 Canada central bank policy rate (month-end) · 2.25% · 2026-09 · Bank of Canada

Everyday prices were still rising in September 2026, with consumer price inflation at 3.09% over 12 months. The unemployment rate that month was 6.5%.

Sources for this paragraph (2)

What the data does not tell us

The figures do not explain why the rate was raised. They record the level and the change only.

Sources for this paragraph (2)
  • F1 Canada central bank policy rate (month-end) · 2.5% · 2026-10 · Bank of Canada
  • F3 Change from previous period (percentage points) · 0.25pp · 2026-10 · Bank of Canada

The price, jobs and earnings figures cover September or August 2026, before the October rate level. They cannot show any effect of the higher rate.

Sources for this paragraph (3)

The data does not show how individual lenders passed the change on to mortgage or loan rates.

Sources for this paragraph (1)
  • F1 Canada central bank policy rate (month-end) · 2.5% · 2026-10 · Bank of Canada

Scenarios to watch

  • Scenario, not a forecast If the Bank of Canada leaves its rate unchanged at its next decision, the month-end figure would stay at 2.5%.
  • Scenario, not a forecast If the Bank makes another change, the month-end figure would differ from 2.5%, and the size of the move would appear as a new change from the previous period.

What to check next

  • The month-end policy rate for November 2026
  • Consumer price inflation (12-month change) for October 2026
  • The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for October 2026
  • Average weekly earnings (12-month change) for September 2026
  • The new housing price index (12-month change) for October 2026

Verified data used in this report

IndicatorValuePeriodSourcesAccessed
F1Canada central bank policy rate (month-end)2.5%2026-10Bank of Canada
F2Canada central bank policy rate (month-end)2.25%2026-09Bank of Canada
F3Change from previous period (percentage points)0.25pp2026-10Bank of Canada
C11Canada consumer price inflation (12-month change)3.09%2026-09Statistics Canada
C12Canada food price inflation (12-month change)2.18%2026-09Statistics Canada
C13Canada new housing price index (12-month change)-2.04%2026-09Statistics Canada
C15Canada shelter prices (CPI, 12-month change)1.75%2026-09Statistics Canada
C16Canada unemployment rate (seasonally adjusted)6.5%2026-09Statistics Canada
C17Canada average weekly earnings (12-month change)3.68%2026-08Statistics Canada
C18Canada GDP growth (annual %)1.74%2025World Bank
C19Canada Unemployment, total (% of labour force, ILO modelled estimate)6.91%2025World Bank
C20Canada Fertility rate, total (births per woman)1.252024World Bank
C21Canada Population aged 65 and above (% of total population)20.26%2025World Bank
C22Canada Population growth (annual %)0.94%2025World Bank

Sources

  • Source: Bank of Canada — license
  • Source: Statistics Canada. Reproduced and distributed on an "as is" basis with the permission of Statistics Canada — license
  • Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0) — license

How this report was checked

  • Data: the newest reference period cited is 2026-10.
  • Figures were collected from the source on
  • Written by an AI model (claude-opus-5-5) using only the official figures listed in this report.
  • Automatic checks passed: every number matches a cited figure, every paragraph names its evidence, and there is no investment advice or copied source text.
  • A separate quality-check model found no unsupported or speculative sentences.
  • No person reviewed this report before publication. Automatic checks confirm the numbers, not every interpretation.
Update history
  • 2026-11-01 02:01 UTC — created
  • 2026-11-01 02:01 UTC — approved+published

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