Canada's inflation rate holds firm at 3% in August

A file photo of a CBC News breaking news logo. (CBC)Social SharingCanada's annual inflation rate held firm at three per cent in August, Statistics Canada said Monday.

The agency said gasoline prices and food costs eased slightly last month, while prices for tours and travel rose. Shelter costs, like rents and mortgage payments, also edged higher in August, Statistics Canada said.

Monday's consumer price index data predates a recent run-up in crude oil prices driven by an intensifying war in the Middle East.

On a monthly basis, consumer prices fell 0.1 per cent.

A Reuters poll of economists last month expected annual inflation held at three per cent, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.