Central bank research

• December 13, 2007

  Central Bank Performance under Inflation Targeting

  Bank of Canada Review - Winter 2007-2008 Marc-André Gosselin

  Gosselin examines and reports on the various factors that contribute to successful inflation targeting. Using a panel of 21 inflation-targeting countries over the period 1990Q1-2007Q2, Gosselin finds that the ability of central banks to hit their targets varies considerably. Some of these differences can be explained by exchange rate fluctuations, fiscal deficits, and differences in financial development. Others are explained by differences in the targeting framework itself and the manner in which it is implemented.

  Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Central bank research, Inflation targets, Monetary policy framework
• December 10, 2007

  Inflation Targeting, Price-Level Targeting, and Fluctuations in Canada's Terms of Trade

  Bank of Canada Review - Winter 2007-2008 Donald Coletti, René Lalonde

  Coletti and Lalonde compare inflation targeting and price-level targeting in the context of a small open economy subject to sizable terms-of-trade shocks. The authors summarize recent research that compares the ability of price-level targeting and inflation targeting to stabilize the macroeconomy when confronted with shocks similar to those experienced by Canada in recent years. Their preliminary results suggest that price-level targeting may represent a feasible alternative to traditional inflation targeting. Their article also provides insight into the direction of current research in this area at the Bank.

  Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Central bank research, Inflation and prices, Monetary policy framework
• October 10, 2007

  The Canadian Journey: An Odyssey into the Complex World of Bank Note Production

  Bank of Canada Review - Autumn 2007 Jill Moxley, Helen Meubus, Maura Brown

  For many years, the Bank of Canada successfully responded to occasional eruptions in counterfeiting by improving the security features on bank notes. The surge in counterfeiting that occurred while the Bank prepared to launch the Canadian Journey series, however, reflected increasingly rapid advances in computer technology that were changing the counterfeiting environment. The article describes these and other challenges that affected the new series and describes how the Bank developed a comprehensive new approach to its currency program and incorporated the valuable lessons it learned from these challenges. Designed to combat counterfeiting and meet the needs of the public, the new strategy includes increased research and development on new bank note security features, an intensified focus on retailer and public education, and a focus on law enforcement.

  Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Bank notes, Central bank research

• Rediscounting Under Aggregate Risk with Moral Hazard

  Staff Working Paper 2007-51 James Chapman, Antoine Martin

  Freeman (1999) proposes a model in which discount window lending and open market operations have different effects. This is important because in most of the literature, these policies are indistinguishable.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Central bank research, Financial markets, Payment clearing and settlement systems JEL Code(s): E, E5, E58, G, G2, G20
• June 14, 2007

  Efficiency and Competition in Canadian Banking

  Bank of Canada Review - Summer 2007 Jason Allen, Walter Engert

  Allen and Engert report on recent research at the Bank of Canada on various aspects of efficiency in the Canadian banking industry. This research suggests that, overall, Canadian banks appear to be relatively efficient producers of financial services and they do not exercise monopoly or collusive-oligopoly power. The authors note the value of continuing to investigate opportunities to improve efficiency and competition in financial services in Canada.

  Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Central bank research, Financial institutions, Financial system regulation and policies

• Cross-Country Estimates of the Degree of Fiscal Dominance and Central Bank Independence

  Staff Working Paper 2007-36 Carlos De Resende

  This paper studies the interdependence between fiscal and monetary policies, and their joint role in the determination of the price level.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Central bank research, Fiscal policy, Inflation: costs and benefits JEL Code(s): E, E3, E31, E4, E42, E5, E50, E6, E63

• Should Central Banks Adjust Their Target Horizons in Response to House-Price Bubbles?

  Staff Discussion Paper 2007-4 Meenakshi Basant Roi, Rhys R. Mendes

  The authors investigate the implications of house-price bubbles for the optimal inflation-target horizon using a dynamic general-equilibrium model with credit frictions, house-price bubbles, and small open-economy features. They find that, given the distribution of shocks and inflation persistence over the past 25 years, the optimal target horizon for Canada tends to be at the lower […]

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Central bank research, Credit and credit aggregates, Economic models, Inflation targets, Monetary policy framework, Monetary policy transmission JEL Code(s): E, E4, E42, E44, E5, E52, E58, E6, E61

• Perhaps the FOMC Did What It Said It Did: An Alternative Interpretation of the Great Inflation

  Staff Working Paper 2007-19 Sharon Kozicki, P. A. Tinsley

  This paper uses real-time briefing forecasts prepared for the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) to provide estimates of historical changes in the design of U.S. monetary policy and in the implied central-bank target for inflation. Empirical results support a description of policy with an effective inflation target of roughly 7 percent in the 1970s.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Central bank research, Monetary aggregates, Monetary policy implementation JEL Code(s): E, E3, E5, N, N1

• Central Bank Performance under Inflation Targeting

  Staff Working Paper 2007-18 Marc-André Gosselin

  The inflation targeting (IT) regime is 17 years old. With practice of IT now in more than 21 countries, there is enough evidence gathered to take stock of the IT experience. In this paper, we analyze the inflation record of IT central banks.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Central bank research, Inflation targets, Monetary policy framework JEL Code(s): E, E3, E31, E5, E52, E58

• Monetary Policy Committees in Action: Is There Room for Improvement?

  Staff Working Paper 2007-6 Philipp Maier

  More than 80 central banks use a committee to take monetary policy decisions. The composition of the committee and the structure of the meeting can affect the quality of the decision making.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Central bank research, Monetary policy framework JEL Code(s): C, C9, C92, D, D7, D70, E, E5, E58