The Globe and Mail reports in its Tuesday, Feb. 20, edition that economists are suggesting that the Bank of Canada should not base its decision to cut interest rates solely on the housing market. A Canadian Press dispatch to The Globe reports that of late Canada's inflation rate has stabilized after dropping from its peak in 2022. On Tuesday, Statistics Canada will release its report on January's consumer price index and it is predicted that Canada's inflation rate has decreased. Royal Bank of Canada, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and Toronto-Dominion Bank all project the annual rate eased to 3.2 per cent, down from 3.4 per cent in December. RBC economist Nathan Janzen says the slowdown was likely driven by energy and food prices. He says: "Gasoline prices were lower than a year ago in January and food price growth probably continued to slow on a year-over-year-basis. I think the attention will be more focused on the other components of CPI, just watching for signs that broader inflation pressures are continuing to slow, if only at a gradual pace." As borrowing costs rise, consumers and businesses are cutting back on spending, causing inflation to slowly approach the 2-per-cent target by year-end.