Canada

This is the best summary I could come up with:

The Bank of Canada opted to hold its benchmark interest rate steady at five per cent as the economy is showing more and more signs of cooling.

The move was widely expected by economists and other financial observers, as the central bank's unprecedentedly swift campaign of rate hikes since early 2022 have made major headway on bringing down runaway inflation.

That's the first shrinkage since the onset of the pandemic and a sign the economy may be tipping into at least a mild recession.

In a statement accompanying its decision, it said it "remains concerned about the persistence of underlying inflationary pressures, and is prepared to increase the policy interest rate further if needed."

Royce Mendes, an economist with Desjardins, says it is noteworthy that policymakers at the central bank "aren't completely shutting the door to further rate increases."

"The recent string of weak data reinforces our call that the Bank of Canada will not be raising rates any further this cycle," Mendes said.

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