December 23, 2006
International topics
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December 8, 2006
Perspectives on Productivity and Potential Output Growth: A Summary of the Joint Banque de France/Bank of Canada Workshop, 24–25 April 2006
A nation's productivity is the prime determinant of its real incomes and standard of living, as well as being a major determinant of its potential output. In the short run, deviations of actual output from potential output are a useful indicator of inflationary pressures. This article is a short summary of the proceedings of the workshop, which focus on productivity and potential output growth among industrialized countries. The research is organized under three main themes: estimating potential growth; productivity and growth; and institutions, policies, and growth. -
The Long-Term Effects of Cross-Listing, Investor Recognition, and Ownership Structure on Valuation
The authors show that the widening of a foreign firm's U.S. investor base and the improved information environment associated with cross-listing on a U.S. exchange each have a separately identifiable effect on a firm's valuation. -
October 20, 2006
MUSE: The Bank of Canada's New Projection Model of the U.S. Economy
Staff projections provided for the Bank of Canada's monetary policy decision process take into account the integration of Canada's very open economy within the global economy, as well as its close real and financial linkages with the United States. To provide inputs for this projection, the Bank has developed several models, including MUSE, NEUQ (the New European Quarterly Model), and BoC-GEM (Bank of Canada Global Economy Model), to analyze and forecast economic developments in the rest of the world. The authors focus on MUSE, the model currently used to describe interaction among the principal U.S. economic variables, including gross domestic product, inflation, interest rates, and the exchange rate. Brief descriptions are also provided of NEUQ and BoC-GEM. -
Endogenous Borrowing Constraints and Consumption Volatility in a Small Open Economy
Consumption volatility relative to output volatility is consistently higher in emerging economies than in developed economies. -
Governance and the IMF: Does the Fund Follow Corporate Best Practice?
The governance challenges facing the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are not simply limited to representation and voice, and the associated question of quota allocation. -
June 16, 2006
Global Imbalances—Just How Dangerous?
The combination of rising current account surpluses in Asia and a growing current account deficit in the United States has raised concerns that the resulting imbalances pose a threat to the world economy, especially if they are reversed in a disorderly manner. Some experts believe that normal market forces will resolve these imbalances over time; others argue that policy-makers should facilitate the adjustment with policies that curb domestic demand in deficit countries and stimulate it in surplus countries. Little and Lafrance provide a guide to the major issues and controversies involved in the debate. -
The International Monetary Fund's Balance-Sheet and Credit Risk
The authors examine the characteristics of International Monetary Fund (IMF) lending from the 1960s to 2005. -
Institutional Quality, Trade, and the Changing Distribution of World Income
Conventional wisdom holds that institutional changes and trade liberalization are two main sources of growth in per capita income around the world. -
The Institutional and Political Determinants of Fiscal Adjustment
The author empirically assesses the effects of institutional and political factors on the need and willingness of governments to make large fiscal adjustments.