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The Bank of Canada is preparing the most thorough review of its inflation targeting mandate in three decades to gauge whether it would be better off switching to a new framework, the central bank’s No. 2 official said.

In a speech Tuesday in Montreal, Senior Deputy Governor Carolyn Wilkins said the central bank will do a “side-by-side assessment” of alternatives to its inflation targeting regime. That framework is facing a serious challenge from historically low neutral rates, which may diminish the bank’s ability to combat future downturns and encourages households to take on excessive risk.

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“There is no doubt that our inflation-targeting framework has promoted the economic and financial well-being of Canadians,” Wilkins said in prepared remarks on the Bank of Canada’s preparations ahead of the mandate’s renewal in 2021. “A decade of experience in the post-crisis world, though, shows us it is not perfect. It is time to conduct a thorough review of the alternatives,” she said.