The Financial Post reports in its Thursday edition that the Bank of Canada is facing unprecedented risks to its economic outlook, as outlined in its Jan. 28 decision to keep the key overnight interest rate at 2.25 per cent. The Post's Barbara Shecter writes that the governing council's deliberations, released Wednesday, highlighted challenges in assessing the impact of geopolitical disturbances, the review of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement and trade disruption adjustments. "With uncertainty heightened, the range of possible outcomes that could affect the outlook has broadened," the governing council led by BOC Governor Tiff Macklem said. "Furthermore, in this unpredictable environment, assigning weights and probabilities to the various risks has been unusually challenging." The BOC has said it will maintain interest rates so long as the economy grows in line with its anticipated outlook. The governing council concluded that risks to the outlook have increased. While economic growth over the next couple of years aligns with previous expectations, central bankers must be ready to respond to any changes. The governing council "agreed that they would need to maintain optionality in setting monetary policy."