The Bank of Canada announced Wednesday it has raised its benchmark interest rate by one-quarter point to one percent.

It's the second time this year that the central bank has increased the rate after hiking it for the first time in seven years in July.

The bank's rate has returned to where it was at the start of 2015, when the central bank started slashing rates to stimulate a Canadian economy that had been waylaid by the oil price crash.

That followed unexpectedly healthy growth in the first three months of 2017 and exceeded the Bank of Canada's projections.

In a statement, the bank said solid employment and wage growth led to strong consumer spending, while the key areas of business investment and exports also improved.

"Recent economic data have been stronger than expected, supporting the bank's view that growth in Canada is becoming more broadly-based and self-sustaining," it said.

The bank's rate has an impact on lending rates that consumers and savers get from banks on mortgages, lines of credits, savings accounts and other financial vehicles.

The Canadian dollar gained more than a penny in reaction to the news on Wednesday, and was changing hands at 82 U.S. cents, the highest level since June 2015.