BlackburnNews.com file photo of vegetables. (Photo by Jason Viau)BlackburnNews.com file photo of vegetables. (Photo by Jason Viau)
Sarnia

Grocery prices slow as gas prices rise in September

The price of buying groceries, a new car, and flying didn't rise as fast in September, and that helped keep inflation at 3.8 per cent.

The Consumer Price Index report noted a 0.2 per cent drop in inflation from August after climbing the previous two consecutive months.

Statistics Canada's monthly analysis said grocery store prices rose 5.8 per cent last month, slowing the pace from August when they were 6.9 per cent.

If you put meat in your grocery cart, you paid 4.4 per cent more last month than you did a year ago, 5.1 per cent more if you bought fish, and 4 per cent more for dairy. The price of fresh fruit rose by 3 per cent, while the cost rose another 14.8 per cent for products like olive oil or lard.

Boarding a plane cost 21.1 per cent less than in September 2022.

If you bought a new couch or bedroom set, that cost fell by 4.6 per cent, and getting behind the wheel of a new car meant paying 1.7 per cent more for that vehicle than 12 months ago.

Filling up the tank in that new car cost more. The price of gasoline rose 7.5 per cent following August's 0.8 per cent increase.

The inflation rate, excluding gas, was 3.7 per cent, down four-tenths of a percentage point from August.

Canada was in the middle of the pack of G7 nations.

The American inflation rate was 3.7 per cent in September, 6.5 per cent in the United Kingdom, and 5.3 per cent in Italy. In France, the rate was 4.9 per cent, and 4.5 per cent in Germany. Japan's rate was 3.2 per cent.

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Photo by Sarah Joy via Flickr

Owen Sound Library session gets cyclists ready to roll

Dust off those handlebars and pump up those tires because cycling season is officially upon us! If your trusty two-wheeler is looking a bit more "rusty" than "ready," the Owen Sound & North Grey Union Public Library has just the thing to get you back on the road safely.