February 17, 2026
Craig Lord, The Canadian Press
Statistics Canada says lower prices at the pump and easing shelter inflation helped rein in the pressure facing consumers in January.
The agency says the annual rate of inflation ticked down to 2.3 per cent last month from 2.4 per cent in December. StatCan says gas prices were 16.7 per cent lower year-over-year in January, largely thanks to the end of the consumer carbon price back in April.
The cost of food purchased from restaurants jumped 12.3 per cent annually in January, which StatCan said was mostly due to last year’s federal “tax holiday” that removed part of the sales tax on dining out and other goods. Costs at the grocery store, meanwhile, rose 4.8 per cent year-over-year, down from five per cent in December, as prices for fresh fruit fell in January.
Costs for shelter rose 1.7 per cent in the first month of the year, which StatCan says marked the slowest pace of price gains for the segment in nearly five years.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 17, 2026.
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