The Globe and Mail reports in its Monday, June 2, edition that the Bank of Canada is expected to keep its key interest rate steady this Wednesday, following stronger-than-anticipated inflation and growth figures. The Globe's Nojoud Al Mallees writes that financial market odds for a rate cut slightly decreased to 20 per cent as of Friday, with Statistics Canada reporting a 2.2-per-cent annualized GDP growth in the first quarter. The BOC's decision "will still be a close call, but with economic data holding up better than feared a second consecutive hold on the overnight rate looks more likely than a cut at this stage," wrote RBC economist Nathan Janzen in a client note on Friday. The BOC held its key interest rate at 2.75 per cent in April, a decision Governor Tiff Macklem justified by pointing to the uncertainty clouding the trade outlook. Some forecasters were anticipating the BOC to follow up with a rate cut in June, but new economic data swayed expectations. Canada's inflation rate dropped to 1.7 per cent in April due to the removal of the consumer carbon price. However, underlying price pressures were stronger than expected, with the BOC's core inflation measures accelerating.