Manitoba has lowest inflation in Canada for third straight month – Winnipeg Free Press

Manitoba has maintained the lowest inflation rate in Canada for three consecutive months, new Statistics Canada data shows.

The important province showed a 0.8 percent year-on-year increase in inflation last March. At the national level, this figure rose slightly and reached 2.9 percent.

Manitoba was the only province with annual inflation below one per cent in January, February and March.

The NDP government points to its freeze on the provincial gas tax.

“One of the first things we did was cut the provincial gas tax, which saves you 14 cents a liter every time you fill up,” Finance Minister Adrien Sala's office said in a statement. “Decision directly affects inflation in Manitoba.”

In March, gas prices across the country increased by 4.5 percent compared to a year ago. In Manitoba, gas prices fell by 10.6 percent.

The provincial government announced an extension to the fuel tax moratorium earlier this month. Instead of ending in June, it will continue until the end of September.

In March 2023, the annual inflation rate in Manitoba was 5.2 percent. It led the Canadian provinces with the highest inflation rates that month.

A year ago, inflation in Manitoba was 7.4 percent year-over-year. At that time, only Prince Edward Island had an inflation rate of 8.9 percent.