Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney
The Bank of Canada (BoC) announced today that they will keep the benchmark interest rate steady at 0.25%. Canadians who have a Variable Rate Mortgage (VRM), or Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) will continue to enjoy very low interest rates, and therefore very low payments.
BoC said that recent indicators are pointing to a global recovery, and that Canada is also starting to see positive economic activity. That being said they also advised that at this time current economic conditions certainly do not warrant an increase in rates.
Mark Carney, Bank of Canada governor said in an earlier report that they would commit themselves to keeping the interest rate constant until the second quarter of 2010. He however emphasized that this was “conditional” on the outlook for inflation.
What does the future hold? Strong and steady is what BoC is reporting with their projections of economic growth of 3.0% for 2010, and 3.3% for 2011.
Australia raises interest rates again
Australia’s central bank hiked interest rates by 25 basis points for a second successive month, saying the improving economic outlook and expected growth in Asia justified the move.
Central bank governor Glenn Stevens said the bank had decided to raise the official cash rate to 3.5 percent, its highest level since February, citing ”noticeably better” conditions for Australia’s major regional trading partners.
”Growth in China has been very strong, which is having a significant impact on other economies in the region and on commodity markets,” Stevens said.
Australia last month became the first advanced economy to raise interest rates since the global financial meltdown, declaring the risk of a recession over and lifting rates from 50-year lows.
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