The consumer price index increased 2.9 per cent in March from a year earlier, marginally higher than the previous month, but still within the Bank of Canada’s comfort zone of one per cent to three per cent. Gauges that correct for volatility fell to their lowest since the summer of 2021. (The Logic)

Talking point: The budget will get most of the attention, but the biggest macroeconomic news of the day might be these indicators, which could allow the Bank of Canada to cut interest rates at its next policy meeting in early June. A jump in gasoline prices was the main reason the headline number rose. The average of the central bank’s two preferred measures of “core” inflation dropped below three per cent on a year-over-year basis for the first time since June 2021. More importantly, the three-month moving average of those figures plunged to an average pace of about 1.3 per cent, below the Bank of Canada’s target of two per cent. Governor Tiff Macklem said last week that he likes what he’s seeing, and that he just needs to see more of it before he cuts rates. So far, so good.