Former Bank of Canada deputy governor Paul Beaudry expects policymakers to cut their key interest rate until it hits at least 2.75 per cent, with the path beyond that point less clear.

Beaudry said he expects the next move in January to be a quarter-point cut, after two half-point cuts in a row. Officials paired Wednesday’s rate decision with a statement that said they will evaluate the need for further cuts “one decision at a time,” but Beaudry said it’s obvious rates are still going to decline from this point.

The benchmark overnight rate is now at 3.25 per cent, the top end of the bank’s estimate for the so-called neutral range. The bottom of that band is 2.25 per cent, and Beaudry said the central bank will likely push to get to the middle of the range.

“It should be decreasing rather quickly to get there,” said Beaudry, who now teaches economics at the University of British Columbia. “Then the question is what will it do when it gets to the centre of that band, which is about 2.75 per cent?”