Poloz Says Canadians’ Debt Load a Growing Concern for Rate Hikes

Poloz Says Canadians’ Debt Load a Growing Concern for Rate Hikes
Governor of the Bank of Canada Stephen Poloz prepares to appear before a finance committee on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on April 23. The Canadian Press/Justin Tang
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OTTAWA—Canadians have amassed a $2 trillion mountain of household debt that’s casting a big shadow over the timing of the Bank of Canada’s next interest rate hike, governor Stephen Poloz said in a May 1 speech in Yellowknife.

To Poloz, the “sheer size” of debt burden also means its associated risks are to endure for a while, although he’s optimistic the economy can navigate them.