When Bob Dylan howls the question “how does it feel, how does it feel?” in his 1965 song “Like a Rolling Stone,” one of the implied answers is “not great.”

Arguably, this is how many Canadians are feeling at the moment about the economy and the cost of living.

Case in point: a recent Abacus Data survey shows that affordability is a major concern in Canada today with 62% of respondents citing the rising cost of living as one of their top three concerns.  

Given all the news about Trump, tariffs and inflation being back on target, why is affordability topping the list?

First, the overall inflation rate may be back to around 2%, but that means consumer prices are still growing. In addition, some segments of the Consumer Price Index are above the target range. Grocery prices, for example, were up by 3.4% in October on a year-over-year basis.

Second, although the rate of price growth has come down, most prices remain much higher than they were a few years ago due to the past spikes in inflation. Once again using groceries as an example, prices are 28% higher than where they stood at the start of 2021. Beef prices, for example, are a whopping 59% higher.  

Third, while inflation has come back under control, economic conditions have weakened and the unemployment rate has increased. Real GDP growth in Canada is estimated to come in at only 1.2% this year and the unemployment rate has averaged 6.9%, up from 5.4% two years ago.

Fourth, anxiety about the economy itself is a factor. Bad economic news and references in the media about the uncertain nature of what’s next have been running high.

Take the latest reading from the Economic Policy Uncertainty Index for Canada: even though it’s down from a record high in March 2025, it remains far above historical levels.

Given these factors, it’s not surprising that Canadians are worried about the economy and the cost of living.

Answer to the previous trivia question: The classic horror film “Frankenstein” was released on November 21, 1931.

Today’s trivia question: What is the origin of the word memorandum?