Consumer Price Index: 2021 in review
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Description: Consumer Price Index: 2021 in review
Canada
Aggregate | Annual average % change |
---|---|
All-items | +3.4% |
All-items excluding energy | +2.4% |
Consumer inflation rose 3.4% in 2021. Excluding energy, the CPI increased 2.4%.
Year | Annual average % change |
---|---|
2017 | +1.6% |
2018 | +2.3% |
2019 | +1.9% |
2020 | +0.7% |
2021 | +3.4% |
Goods and services in 2021
In 2021, Canadians saw the highest rate of inflation since 1991 as the market grappled with the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain disruptions, rebounding energy prices, unfavourable weather conditions and rising housing costs.
Goods and services | Annual average % change |
---|---|
Gasoline | +31.2% |
Passenger vehicles | +5.1% |
Homeowners’ replacement cost | +11.4% |
Mortgage interest cost | -7.7% |
Natural gas | +16.1% |
Fuel oil and other fuels | +24.4% |
Meat | +4.3% |
Fresh vegetables | -2.6% |
Car insurance premiums | -3.4% |
Telephone services | -12.6% |
Household furnishings and equipment | +4.8% |
As physical distancing measures eased throughout 2021, prices for services consumed outside the home began to recover from the lows observed in 2020.
Services | Annual average % change |
---|---|
Food purchased from restaurants | +3.1% |
Personal care services | +5.4% |
Traveller accommodation | +2.2% |
Consumer inflation across Canada
Prices rose in all provinces in 2021, but consumers in Atlantic Canada felt it the most amid higher energy prices, since furnace fuel oil is commonly used in the region for home heating. As more people migrated to the region, Atlantic Canadians also saw larger increases in rent and grocery prices compared with Canada as a whole.
Region | Above/below Canada level | Annual average % change |
---|---|---|
Newfoundland and Labrador | Above Canada level | +3.7% |
Prince Edward Island | Above Canada level | +5.1% |
Nova Scotia | Above Canada level | +4.1% |
New Brunswick | Above Canada level | +3.8% |
Quebec | Above Canada level | +3.8% |
Ontario | Above Canada level | +3.5% |
Manitoba | Below Canada level | +3.3% |
Saskatchewan | Below Canada level | +2.6% |
Alberta | Below Canada level | +3.2% |
British Columbia | Below Canada level | +2.8% |
Whitehorse, Yukon | Below Canada level | +3.3% |
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories | Below Canada level | +2.2% |
Iqaluit, Nunavut | Below Canada level | +1.4% |
Source: Statistics Canada. Table 18-10-0005-01 Consumer Price Index, annual average, not seasonally adjusted.
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