Inflation Holds at 3% in August as Rent and Travel Costs Rise: StatCan

Slower gas price growth was offset by pricier rent and travel, while grocery bills finally cooled off.

Canada’s annual inflation rate held steady at 3% in August, Statistics Canada reported Monday, as easing gas prices were offset by higher rent and travel costs.

Gasoline was still going up in August, just not as fast: prices rose 22.8% year-over-year, down from a 25.7% increase in July, with the ongoing Middle East conflict still weighing on the numbers. Strip out gasoline entirely, and consumer prices were up a more modest 2.4% last month.

There was some good news at the checkout counter. Food prices rose more slowly than overall inflation for the first time since July 2024, climbing 2.8% year-over-year. Dairy led that slowdown, cheese and yogurt prices rose just 0.7% in August, well off July’s 3.1% pace, with smaller increases for pork, condiments, spices and vinegar adding to the cooldown.

Clothing got cheaper too, down 1.1% annually, driven by a 2.3% drop in men’s clothing and a 1.9% decline in kids’ clothing.

Travel was the opposite story. Fuel surcharges and airlines adjusting to last year’s sharp drop in Canadian travel to the U.S. pushed travel costs higher. Rent kept climbing as well, up 2.8% year-over-year in August compared with 2.5% in July.

Regionally, the Atlantic provinces ran hottest, with Nova Scotia, PEI and Newfoundland and Labrador all seeing inflation accelerate.