Statistics Canada says soaring gas prices fuelled the largest rise in the annual inflation rate in four decades last month.
In May, customers paid 48 per cent more at the pump than a year earlier as a result of high crude oil prices, caused in turn by supply bottlenecks following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and a leap in demand prompted by eased COVID-19 restrictions.
The agency says the price of gasoline jumped 12 per cent between April and May, the largest one-month price increase since January 2003.
That surge helped propel last month’s 34.8 per cent rise in energy prices year over year.
StatCan says the cost of consumer items as a whole rose 7.7 per cent last month compared with a year ago, its largest increase since January 1983 when it gained 8.2 per cent.
Higher oil prices have also pushed up the price tag of jet fuel, which hit US$176.13 in North America on Friday, up 17 per cent from a month earlier and 126 per cent from a year ago, according to the International Air Transport Association.
The price of gas at some stations in Greater Victoria is currently below 219.9, according to Gasbuddy.com. That’s a bit lower than the 234.9 price seen earlier this month.
The Canadian Press
