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OTTAWA (ANTARA) – Canada's central bank, the Bank of Canada (BoC), announced Wednesday (9/04/2019) that it is maintaining its benchmark interest rate at 1.75 percent, while it assesses the extent of the damage caused by the intensification of trade. conflicts over the impact on the national and global economy.

Canada's central bank increased its interest rate to 1.75 percent in October last year, but it has remained unchanged since.

A decision on unchanged interest rates was widely expected despite the difficulties in the Canadian economy bounce strong in the second quarter.

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Last week, Statistics Canada said the country's economy grew at an annualized rate of 3.7 percent in the second quarter, which was higher than the central bank's forecast of 2.3 percent.

The central bank expects a slowdown in economic activity in the second half of 2019, focusing on weak spots such as a sharp contraction in Canadian business investment that coincided with rising trade tensions.

The intensifying trade conflict between the United States and China poses a greater drag on global economic momentum than the central bank predicted at its July 10 meeting, the central bank said in a statement.

The Canadian economy is operating close to its potential and inflation is on target. However, escalating trade conflicts and the resulting uncertainty are weighing heavily on the global and Canadian economies.

“In this context, the current level of monetary stimulus remains appropriate,” he added.

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