Bio

Brigitte Desroches is a Senior Policy Director in the Canadian Economic Analysis Department. In this capacity, she is a member of the senior leadership team overseeing the Bank's analysis of the Canadian economy and its research on monetary policy. In addition, she conducts analysis and research on current economic issues and monetary policy more generally. Her primary interests include economic forecasting and policy analysis.

Brigitte became an Economist in the International Economic Analysis Department in 2003. Over the years, she has held increasingly senior positions in the International Economic Analysis Department and the Canadian Economic Analysis Department. She developed a particular expertise in forecasting and macroeconomic modelling, contributing to policy-relevant research and analysis.

More recently, Ms. Desroches was the Director of the Canadian Projections and Policy Analysis Division. In this capacity, she oversaw the analysis of economic developments in Canada, assessed their impact on the outlook and provided a recommendation to Governing Council for the setting of monetary policy. She subsequently became Senior Policy Adviser in the Canadian Economic Analysis Department, leading the departments’ contributions to the Bank of Canada’s Monetary Policy Report (MPR).

Staff discussion papers

Monetary Policy Governance: Bank of Canada Practices to Support Policy Effectiveness

Staff Discussion Paper 2024-14 Brigitte Desroches, Sharon Kozicki, Laure Simon
We examine different monetary policy governance structures and discuss the important roles of non-legislated processes and practices. We also provide an update on monetary policy governance at the Bank of Canada and how it has evolved over time.
Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Credibility, Monetary policy communications, Monetary policy framework JEL Code(s): E, E0, E02, E5, E58

Financial Spillovers Across Countries: The Case of Canada and the United States

Staff Discussion Paper 2011-1 Kimberly Beaton, Brigitte Desroches
The authors investigate financial spillovers across countries with an emphasis on the effect of shocks to financial conditions in the United States on financial conditions and economic activity in Canada. These questions are addressed within a global vector autoregression model.
Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Business fluctuations and cycles, Economic models, Financial stability, International topics JEL Code(s): E, E2, E27, E3, E32, F, F3, F36, F4, F40

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Staff working papers

The Transmission of World Shocks to Emerging-Market Countries: An Empirical Analysis

Staff Working Paper 2004-44 Brigitte Desroches
The first step in designing effective policies to stabilize an economy is to understand business cycles. No country is isolated from the world economy and external shocks are becoming increasingly important.
Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Exchange rate regimes, International topics, Monetary policy transmission JEL Code(s): E, E3, E30, E32, E6, E61, F, F0, F02

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Bank publications

Bank of Canada Review articles

March 9, 2010

Inflation Expectations and the Conduct of Monetary Policy: A Review of Recent Evidence and Experience

Bank of Canada Review - Spring 2010 Rose Cunningham, Brigitte Desroches, Eric Santor
This article explores the role of inflation expectations in the conduct of monetary policy. It reviews the various measures of inflation expectations used by central banks, including surveys and market-based indicators, and considers their advantages and disadvantages. It examines the critical role of inflation expectations in the framework that central banks use to understand, forecast, and control inflation. It also looks at their role as an indicator of central bank credibility. The behaviour of inflation expectations over the past two years is analyzed and policy conclusions are offered.
Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Inflation targets, Monetary policy implementation
December 23, 2006

Global Savings, Investment, and World Real Interest Rates

Bank of Canada Review - Winter 2006-2007 Brigitte Desroches, Michael Francis
Over the past 25 years, world long-term interest rates have declined to levels not seen since the 1960s. This decline has been accompanied by falling world investment and savings rates. The authors explore global saving and investment outcomes that have led to the fall in the world real interest rate. The results show that the key factors explaining movements in savings and investment are variables that evolve relatively slowly over time, such as labour force growth and the age structure of the world economy. The conclusions suggest that, over the coming years, it is unlikely that these slowly changing variables will be a source of significant changes in world real interest rates.
Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Interest rates, International topics

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Journal publications

Refereed journals

  • World Real Interest Rates: A Global Savings and Investment Perspective
    (with Michael Francis), Applied Economics, forthcoming in 2008H2.
  • Evaluating Threshold Effects in Consumer Sentiment
    (with Marc-André Gosselin), Southern Economic Journal, Vol. 70, April 2004.

Other publications

  • "The Transmission of World Shocks to Emerging-Market Countries: An Empirical Analysis"
    Money Affairs, Vol. XVIII, No. 2, July-December 2005.
  • "Explicación de cómo se transmiten los choques mundiales a los países de mercados emergentes: un análisis empírico"
    Monetaria, Vol. XXVIII, No. 3, July-September 2005.
  • "Institutional Reform, Trade and Growth: The Experiences of India and China in a Global Economy"
    (with Michael Francis and Francois Painchaud). Proceedings of the International Conference on Economic Reforms in India and China, Indira Gandhi Institute, February 2005.