The Board of Directors of the Bank of Canada today announced the appointment of Marc-André Gosselin and Nicolas Vincent as Deputy Governors, effective May 25 and August 3, 2026, respectively.

Results from the Business Outlook Survey and the Business Leaders’ Pulse indicate that firms’ sentiment has improved. Responses were mostly gathered before the start of the war in the Middle East. Fewer businesses reported being affected by trade tensions with the United States, and many expect sales growth to improve. Most businesses plan to maintain or slightly increase current staffing levels and investment spending. One-year-ahead inflation expectations have ticked up slightly. Results of follow-up calls made after the start of Iran war suggest that many firms are already facing higher input costs related to the war due to rising prices for energy, fertilizer and freight.

Results of the first-quarter 2026 survey, conducted before the war in the Middle East, show that concerns about high prices and economic uncertainty continue to weigh on consumers’ spending plans. Even so, consumers, particularly those working in trade-sensitive sectors, became less negative about spending than in the previous quarter, and the CSCE indicator rose slightly reflecting this improvement in spending plans. Concerns about job losses remain elevated and increased among workers in sectors where artificial intelligence poses a greater risk of task replacement. Results of a special survey conducted after the war in the Middle East began suggest that most households expect the conflict to weaken the Canadian economy and raise prices.

This is an account of the deliberations of the Bank of Canada’s Governing Council leading to the monetary policy decision on March 18, 2026.