The cost of living got a bit steeper in this country last month, according to figures released Thursday by Statistics Canada
The agency's consumer price index, which calculates the official inflation rate, increased to an annual pace of 2.1% in November as food and gasoline got more expensive
The data agency attributed the rise to gasoline prices, which were more than 19% higher in November than the same month a year ago.
Food prices weren't up by quite as much, but staples such as fresh vegetables were 3.8% more expensive during the month than they were a year earlier.
The inflation rate was higher in November compared to October in every province. The rate was highest in Saskatchewan at 3.7%, with Quebec registering the lowest at 1.7%.
Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had been expecting the rate to come in at around 2%
The November CPI number is well ahead of the 1.4% pace in October.
The strong inflation number caused the Canadian dollar to jump, with the loonie gaining more than half a cent to trade at 78.60 cents U.S.
