[HIGHLIGHTS] The Bank of Canada announced that it would maintain the current benchmark interest rate and said it was too early to consider cutting interest rates.

The Bank of Canada announced on the 6th that it will maintain the benchmark interest rate, the overnight lending rate, at 5%. The move was in line with widespread market expectations.

Governor Steve Macklem said at a press conference in Ottawa that the central bank believes that the current policy interest rate is still appropriate. He said the return to the 2% target inflation level will be slow and potentially uneven. In Canada, the economy grew more than expected in the final quarter of last year, but growth remained weak and below its potential.