The Bank of Canada has lowered its key interest rate to 3.75 per cent, making a 50 basis-point cut for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic.Before Wednesday, the rate stood at 4.25 per cent. Economists were expecting the central bank to go with a larger-than-usual cut,

The Bank of Canada on Wednesday reduced its key benchmark rate by 50 basis points to 3.75%, its first bigger-than-usual move in more than four years, and hailed signs the country has returned to an era of low inflation.

The Bank of Canada has cut interest rates by half a percentage point to 3.75 per cent, in a bid to spur consumer spending and boost growth. The central bank’s move comes after Canada’s inflation fell below its 2 per cent goal,