Comments from Poloz and Wilkins:
- Federal tax moves equivalent to about 10-15 bps of BOC easing
- Wilkins: Output gap only has a very small drag on inflation in the projection horizon
- Retail sales in Canada don't always include online sales
- Some of Canadian retail sales recorded in US, because people buying from Amazon so signals might not be accurate
- We don't see the froth in the housing market
- I've said many times that we present a fresh press release each time so that individual words don't preoccupy analysis. I'll say it now: our rates remain appropriate.
- I believe issue in economy will prove temporary but they might prove more persistent
- We talked about insurance cut in Oct based on downside risks. Some of those risks have landed but easier depends on two-way risks like financial vulnerabilities
The comments in the press conference were less dovish than in the statement. The stance is more watch-and-wait than an itchy trigger finger.