The Government of Manitoba has announced that new Statistics Canada data shows Manitoba has the lowest inflation rate in the country, mainly owing to the gas tax holiday.
“The numbers are in and they show that our government is taking real action to make Manitoba more affordable,” said Premier Wab Kinew. “Government can’t do everything, but we can do some things to help families deal with rising costs. We took action right away to give people relief at the pump and now we see that relief helping to lower costs across the province.”
Manitoba’s inflation rate in January was 0.8 per cent, which is down from 1.7 per cent in December 2023. Manitoba’s consumer inflation is the lowest among provinces in Canada and the only province with a consumer inflation less than the Bank of Canada’s target range, noted the premier.
According to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) from Statistics Canada, the gas tax holiday, which began on Jan. 1 and removed the 14-cent provincial tax on the price of gasoline, “directly contributed to a 0.4 per cent decrease to inflation.” Statistics Canada also noted Manitoba’s gasoline prices fell 20.2 per cent in January 2024 compared to January 2023.
The CPI rose to 2.9 per cent on a year-over-year basis in January. The largest contributor to deceleration was lower gasoline prices. Gas prices in Manitoba fell 14 per cent in January, which contributed to a national decline in inflation.
