The Bank of Canada’s rate-setting meetings are held eight times a year and are attended by the bank’s governor, senior deputy governor, and four other members of the bank’s Governing Council. At these meetings, the bank reviews economic data and makes a decision on where to set interest rates.
In the past, the only information that was made public about these meetings was the final interest rate decision and a brief statement about the reasoning behind that decision. However, starting with the next rate-setting meeting on October 24, 2019, the bank will also release a summary of the deliberations that took place at the meeting.
The summary will be released within two weeks of the meeting and will cover topics such as economic growth, inflation, financial stability risks, and global trade developments. The goal is to give Canadians greater insight into how the bank makes its decisions and how those decisions could impact them.
Conclusion:
The Bank of Canada’s decision to start publishing summaries of its interest rate deliberations is a major shift in policy for the central bank. The move comes as the bank looks to increase transparency and accountability in its decision-making process. The first summary will be released after the next rate-setting meeting on October 24, 2019.
