The Bank of Canada lowered its key interest rate by 25 basis points to 2.5 per cent on Wednesday, marking its first cut since March, as the central bank moves to stimulate a weakened economy.

The job market has softened, inflation excluding gas has eased, and the federal government's removal of retaliatory tariffs against the U.S. has reduced some "upside risk" to future inflation, governor Tiff Macklem noted in his opening remarks during a news conference in Ottawa.