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BoC Opens the Door to Rate Hikes: What It Means for Your Mortgage

  Published September 4, 2026 The Bank of Canada held its policy rate at 2.25% on September 2 — the seventh straight hold — but Governor Tiff Macklem didn't sound like a central banker done for the year. He told reporters the Bank is "prepared to raise interest rates, and if it takes more than one increase, we're prepared to do that," if inflation stays too high. That's a real shift in tone, and it lands right as a wave of Canadians hit their mortgage renewal date. Here's what changed, who's forecasting what, and what it actually means for your payment. Why the Bank Suddenly Sounds Hawkish Canada's annual inflation rate has climbed to around 3% — a full point above the Bank's 2% target — and the Bank is pointing squarely at energy prices. Oil has stayed elevated because of the Iran conflict and disruption near the Strait of Hormuz, pushing gas prices up and dragging headline CPI with it. Core inflation, which strips out food and energy, is still s...

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BCGEU Slams B.C. Government Over Failed Return to Bargaining Table



Negotiations between the B.C. government and the B.C. General Employees’ Union (BCGEU) collapsed almost immediately on Monday, with union president Paul Finch accusing the province of staging a “cheap stunt” rather than presenting a serious offer.

Finch said government negotiators arrived three hours late and offered only a marginally improved wage proposal, far short of what workers facing an affordability crisis had demanded. “Talks broke off today, but they didn’t really start,” Finch told members gathered outside a government office in Victoria.

The BCGEU, representing 34,000 public sector workers, has been on strike for five weeks in what is believed to be the longest civil service strike in B.C.’s history. The union has been pushing for wage increases of 8.25 per cent over two years, but countered with a proposal of four per cent annually. The government’s latest offer amounted to five per cent over two years.

With no progress at the table, Finch warned that job action will escalate, including larger demonstrations and possible rallies outside the B.C. legislature when lawmakers return in early October. Pickets remain in place at liquor and cannabis distribution warehouses, government offices, and dozens of provincial liquor stores.


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