Remember when the Bank Overnight rate was 6.00%? You are bloody old if you do (I have been told). This one is from October 2008, when the rates had 1/2% to drop. These days, there is no room for that big a drop.
As usual on the day that the Bank of Canada is about to announce an interest rate change, I typically wait until that is announced, but today, I’ll simply “flash” that information when it is available at 9:00 AM ET.
The prognosticators are saying this is most likely another 1/2 point drop, however, whether the large banks follow suit or reflect the entire 1/2 point drop, is another story completely, as we have seen, some banks are attempting to help their margins by expanding the working area for their borrowed moneys (Toronto Dominion for one).
Bank Rate Since 2000?
Here is an interesting graph, using the data from the Bank of Canada’s web site. It shows the key overnight rates over the past 8 years, interesting to see how low rates have been and yet still there is problems with high interest rates causing folks to have problems with their debt loads?
The graph is missing the last 1/2 point drop that happened earlier this month (apologies for the inaccuracy, I am just figuring out how to do this stuff on the web).
Deflation?
Now that Gasoline prices have dropped by about 30% in Ottawa, here is an interesting question, are we now in a deflationary period? Will all the surtaxes and rate increases levied because of high gasoline prices be lowered now? Will I ever answer these rhetorical questions? Anyone care to comment?
