A new poll by the Angus Reid Institute has found that the majority of Canadians (80%) are
scaling back their spending as consumer prices continue to rise across the country.
The survey of 2,279 adults found that four-out-of-five people have cut back their spending over
the past few months to cope with inflation that is running at a 30-year high in Canada.
A further 56% of people said they can’t keep up with the current cost of living, with 52% saying
they couldn’t manage an unexpected cost of more than $1,000.
To save money, Canadians say they have reduced their discretionary spending (52%), delayed
a major purchase (42%) and begun to drive less (41%).
Canadians appear to be particularly worried about higher grocery bills, the survey found.
According to the poll, four-in-five (80%) of respondents said grocery stores are taking advantage
of inflation by hiking prices. Statistics Canada reported that prices at grocery stores climbed by
9.9% in July from a year ago.
The total inflation rate increased 7.6% on a year-over-year basis in July, which was lower than
the June reading of 8.1%.
The Angus Reid Institute conducted an online survey from August 8 to 10. The poll has a
margin of error of +/- 2.0 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
