Comments from Poloz and Deputy Governor Wilkins in the press conference

  • Deviation from full capacity due to oil will be temporary
  • We're still on that path to full capacity
  • Neutral range wouldn't be below inflation (so it will be above 2.00%)
  • "It's all about the data"
  • "It's going to take time for us to get what we need from the data"
  • Canadian are 'very sensitive' to the impact of higher rates on Canadians
  • It's unclear if housing has reached equilibrium
  • Most significant uncertainty is US-China trade
  • 2018 was 'off year' for Canadian investment because of NAFTA uncertainty
  • Debt incurred over past year was much higher quality

Poloz compared the Canadian housing market to a beer. He said you need to get through the froth on top to see if it's any good.

Overall, there wasn't much in the press conference to change anything we heard in the MPC or statement.