Leading economic indicators in the worlds ninth largest economy rose 0.4 percent in the month of March. The figure is comparably lower than the 0.7 percent in February and declines against the 0.5 percent consensus estimate. Bolstering the advance were gains in the housing index as house durable purchases helped to support the overall figure. The subindex rose 0.6 percent during the month as spending on appliances jumped 1 percent according to Statistics Canada. The figure should work well into the Bank of Canada rate decision later this morning in boosting speculation of a near term rate hike by policy makers. Incidentally, the figure is in line with recently positive reports, lending to the overall sentiment.
