Tiff Macklem: Economic progress report - controlling inflation

Remarks (delivered virtually) by Mr Tiff Macklem, Governor of the Bank of Canada, to the CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) Society Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, 3 March 2022.

The views expressed in this speech are those of the speaker and not the view of the BIS.

Introduction

It is a pleasure to be with you today to provide an economic update and to discuss both our monetary policy decision yesterday and what Canadians can expect from us going forward.

Before I begin, I want to acknowledge the shocking developments that have taken place over the past week in Ukraine. The senseless loss of human life and the devastating impact of this unprovoked Russian invasion on the Ukrainian people are beyond comprehension. I know this is an extremely anxious time for the many Canadians who have family and friends in Ukraine, and my thoughts are with you. The invasion is also a major new source of uncertainty and volatility in the global economy. The situation is fluid, and we are following events closely and will be assessing the ongoing economic impacts.

These events come just as we approach the two-year mark of the COVID-19 pandemic. The economic recovery from the pandemic has been impressive. While uncertainty about the evolution of the virus remains, the agility and resilience of Canadian households and businesses through the past two years of immense challenge cannot be overstated. And after providing extraordinary stimulus to support the economy through this tremendous shock, we are now clearly on a path to normalizing monetary policy. That's what I'd like to discuss with you today.