OTTAWA—Canada’s annual inflation rate accelerated to an 18-year-high in August, driven by broad upward price pressures, data showed on Wednesday, just days before a hotly contested federal election that could see Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberals ousted.
The rate rose to 4.1 percent in August, its fastest clip since March 2003, Statistics Canada said, beating analyst estimates and prompting Trudeau’s main rival to pounce over the rising cost of living.
