A need to fuel faster growth and shield the economy from U.S. trade-policy uncertainty led senior Bank of Canada officials to agree on a quarter-point rate cut last month, according to minutes summarizing central bank deliberations.

As part of the agreement, Canada committed to appointing a Fentanyl Czar and designating drug cartels as terrorist organizations. On February 3, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted that Canada is implementing a $1.3bn border plan, which includes new helicopters, technology, and personnel to curb fentanyl trafficking.

Bank of Canada officials acknowledged the economic uncertainty created by a potential trade battle supported their decision to cut interest rates last month.

Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem says central banks face an increasingly difficult job as the country faces a maelstrom of potential U.S. tariffs, technological disruptions, extreme weather and global political upheaval.

University of Toronto economist Michelle Alexopoulos made headlines at Bloomberg, the Canadian Press and other outlets with her recent appointment as the Bank of Canada’s second external deputy governor.

Among the G10 central banks which oversee the world's most heavily-traded currencies, three of the four that met last month - Sweden, the ECB and Canada - continued their cutting cycles, while Japan, where rates hardly ever go up, hiked for the second time in less than a year.

The potential for a long trade war with the United States, and the uncertainty it brings even if the threat isn’t realized, weighed heavily on the Bank of Canada’s governing council when it decided to cut interest rates last month.