OTTAWA, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- The Bank of Canada announced on Wednesday that it kept its benchmark interest rate steady at 1.75 percent, citing early evidence of a stabilizing global economy despite trade conflicts.
The central bank's rate target has been kept at 1.75 percent since October 2018.
In its announcement, the bank said there is nascent evidence that the global economy is stabilizing and growth is still expected to edge higher over the next couple of years.
It said financial markets have been supported by central bank actions and waning recession concerns while being buffeted by news on the trade front.
"Indeed, ongoing trade conflicts and related uncertainty are still weighing on global economic activity, and remain the biggest source of risk to the outlook," it said.
"Future interest rate decisions will be guided by the bank's continuing assessment of the adverse impact of trade conflicts against the sources of resilience in the Canadian economy -- notably consumer spending and housing activity," the bank added.
The pace of economic growth in Canada slowed in the third quarter, falling to a 1.3-percent annualized rate from a 3.5-percent annualized rate in the second quarter, Statistics Canada announced last week.
