The Consumer Price Index rose by 1.4% in February compared with February 2015, after an annualized increase of 2.0% in January.
The CPI in February for goods was up 1.0% from a year earlier while the CPI for services rose 1.6%.
Gasoline prices decreased 13.1% from February 2015, after rising 2.1% in January. Overall, energy prices fell 7.2% between February 2014 and February 2015, following a 0.4% annualized rate of decrease in January. Excluding energy, the annualized Consumer Price Index rose 2.0% in February, down from 2.2% in January.
Food prices rose 3.9% in the 12 months to February, after the 4.0% rate of annualized increase posted in January. The cost of food purchased from stores in the 12 months to February grew by 4.4%, down from a 4.6% increase in January. Prices for fresh vegetables and fresh fruit contributed the most to the gain. The price of meat was less year-over-year in February than January. At 1.6%, this was the smallest gain in the meat index since January 2014. Prices for food purchased from restaurants advanced 2.7% on a year-over-year basis, following a 2.5% increase in January.
Costs associated with shelter rose 1.2% in February over February 2015, up from 1.1% in January.
Consumers paid 1.8% more for household operations, furnishings and equipment in February compared to February 2015, up from the 1.7% year-over-year increase recorded in January.
Transportation prices fell 0.5% in the 12 months to February 2016, following a 2.2% increase in January. This year-over-year increase was mainly due to consumers paying more for gasoline than they did in January. The purchase of passenger vehicles index was up 5.0% in February, its largest annualized gain since September 2010.
In the 12 months to February 2016, consumer prices rose in all ten provinces. The CPI grew the most in New Brunswick (+1.8%), followed by Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario and British Columbia, all at (+1.6%). The lowest annualized increase occurred in Quebec (+1.0%).