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| - Canadians paid 3.4 percent more for goods and services in April than a year earlier, as prices bounced back from a steep plunge last year, the government statistical agency said Wednesday. The inflation rate, following a 2.2 percent gain in March, rose at its fastest pace since May 2011 and was 0.3 percentage points higher than analysts had expected, more than a year after the World Health Organization declared a pandemic. Gasoline prices rose 62.5 percent year over year -- setting a new record high, according to Statistics Canada. Homeowners' replacement costs, meanwhile, climbed 9.1 percent, posting the largest gain since April 1989, led by higher building costs and demand for single-family homes that pushed up prices for newly built homes. Prices for clothing and footwear, electricity and passenger vehicles were also up. But a larger supply pushed down prices for tomatoes 29.8 percent. Prices for telephone services also fell, partially due to wireless service providers offering bonus data promotions on some cellular plans. amc/st
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