A new poll has found that Canadians are cutting back their spending on groceries and other essential items as the cost of living steadily rises with inflation.
Four-fifths (80%) of respondents to the Leger poll said they had started or planned to buy cheaper items at the grocery store to save on food bills, and cut back on how much food they throw out to stretch every dollar.
Some three-quarters (75%) of respondents said they planned to cut spending on household items and eat from local restaurants less frequently due to high prices.
About one in two (50%) were already using their vehicles less to save on gasoline as prices at the pumps get pushed ever higher and a further one in five respondents (20%) planned to do the same in the near future.
Overall, four-fifths of people surveyed said inflation was having a serious impact on their household, and the financial squeeze may only worsen as inflation rates are expected to go even higher.
The poll of 1,515 Canadians was taken between March 11 and March 13.
Statistics Canada reported last week that the annual inflation rate in February was 5.7%, its highest level since 1991.
The headline inflation rate is expected to rise closer to 6% by the time March's figure is calculated as Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine spikes global prices for oil and wheat.
While two-thirds of respondents to the Leger poll said their household finances were in good shape, almost as many noted that their earnings hadn't kept up with the pace of price increases, creating a gap in purchasing power.
In a bid to tame inflation, the Bank of Canada earlier this month raised its key interest rate to 0.5%, marking the first hike since it slashed the trendsetting rate to near zero at the onset of the pandemic.
