Stephen Murchison - Latest

• Variable-rate mortgages with fixed payments: Examining trigger rates

  Staff Analytical Note 2022-19 Stephen Murchison, Maria teNyenhuis

  We estimate the share of variable-rate mortgages with fixed payments that reached the so-called trigger rate—the interest rate at which mortgage payments no longer cover the principal. Amid rising interest rates, this share was close to 50% at the end of October 2022 and could potentially reach 65% in 2023.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical notes Topic(s): Credit and credit aggregates, Financial institutions, Interest rates, Recent economic and financial developments JEL Code(s): D, D1, E, E4, E5, G, G2, G21
• April 26, 2019

  The road to digital money

  

  Stephen Murchison

  From beaver pelts to paper money to digital currencies

  Content Type(s): Publications, The Economy, Plain and Simple Topic(s): Bank notes, Central bank research, Cryptoassets, Cryptocurrencies, Digital currencies and fintech, Financial services, Financial system regulation and policies, Payment clearing and settlement systems
• September 28, 2018

  The benefits of freer trade

  

  Stephen Murchison, Alex Chernoff

  Freer trade lowers prices and boosts economies, yet not everyone benefits equally. Fair policies are essential for balanced growth and widespread prosperity.

  Content Type(s): Publications, The Economy, Plain and Simple Topic(s): Balance of payments and components, Development economics, International topics, Recent economic and financial developments, Trade integration

• Monetary Policy Under Uncertainty: Practice Versus Theory

  Staff Discussion Paper 2017-13 Rhys R. Mendes, Stephen Murchison, Carolyn A. Wilkins

  For central banks, conducting policy in an environment of uncertainty is a daily fact of life. This uncertainty can take many forms, ranging from incomplete knowledge of the correct economic model and data to future economic and geopolitical events whose precise magnitudes and effects cannot be known with certainty.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Monetary policy, Monetary policy and uncertainty JEL Code(s): E, E5, E52, E58, E6, E61, E65
• February 3, 2016

  Opening Statement before the Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce

  Opening statement Stephen Murchison Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce Ottawa, Ontario

  Stephen Murchison discusses the causes and economic impact of movements in the Canadian dollar exchange rate.

  Content Type(s): Press, Speeches and appearances, Opening statements
• November 13, 2014

  Should Forward Guidance Be Backward-Looking?

  Bank of Canada Review - Autumn 2014 Rhys R. Mendes, Stephen Murchison

  When constrained by the zero lower bound, some central banks have communicated a threshold that must be met before short-term interest rates would be permitted to rise. Simulation results for Canada show that forward guidance that is conditional on achieving a price-level threshold can theoretically raise demand and inflation expectations by significantly more than unemployment thresholds. This superior performance is attributable to the fact that the price-level threshold depends on past inflation outcomes. In practice, however, history-dependent thresholds such as this might be more challenging for central banks to communicate.

  Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Business fluctuations and cycles, Monetary policy framework JEL Code(s): E, E5, E52, E58

• ToTEM II: An Updated Version of the Bank of Canada’s Quarterly Projection Model

  Technical Report No. 100 José Dorich, Michael K. Johnston, Rhys R. Mendes, Stephen Murchison, Yang Zhang

  This report provides a detailed technical description of an updated version of the Terms-of-Trade Economic Model (ToTEM II), which replaced ToTEM (Murchison and Rennison 2006) in June 2011 as the Bank of Canada’s quarterly projection model for Canada.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Technical reports Topic(s): Business fluctuations and cycles, Economic models JEL Code(s): E, E1, E17, E2, E20, E3, E30, E4, E40, E5, E50, F, F4, F41
• August 19, 2010

  Price-Level Targeting and Relative-Price Shocks

  Bank of Canada Review - Summer 2010 Stephen Murchison

  Stephen Murchison reviews the findings of recent Bank of Canada research on the relative merits of inflation targeting and price-level targeting (PLT) for a small open economy, such as Canada's, that is susceptible to large and persistent terms-of-trade shocks.

  Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Central bank research, Inflation targets, Monetary policy framework
• March 9, 2010

  Monetary Policy Rules in an Uncertain Environment

  Bank of Canada Review - Spring 2010 Gino Cateau, Stephen Murchison

  This article examines recent research on the influence of various forms of economic uncertainty on the performance of different classes of monetary policy rules: from simple rules to fully optimal monetary policy under commitment. The authors explain why uncertainty matters in the design of monetary policy rules and provide quantitative examples from the recent literature. They also present results for several policy rules in ToTEM, the Bank of Canada's main model for projection and analysis, including rules that respond to price level, rather than to inflation.

  Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Econometric and statistical methods, Economic models, Monetary policy and uncertainty, Monetary policy framework
• November 11, 2009

  Declining Inflation Persistence in Canada: Causes and Consequences

  Bank of Canada Review - Winter 2009-2010 Rhys R. Mendes, Stephen Murchison

  The persistence of both core and total consumer price index inflation in Canada has declined significantly since the 1980s. In addition to providing up-to-date estimates of inflation persistence, this article examines possible reasons for the decline suggested in the literature. The role played by monetary policy, through its effect on price- and wage-setting behaviour, is distinguished from possible changes to the structure of the economy that are independent of monetary policy. The authors also discuss the implications for monetary policy of low structural persistence in inflation, including the choice of an inflation-targeting regime versus a price-level-targeting regime.

  Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Inflation and prices, Monetary policy framework