May 11, 2017 Unconventional Monetary Policy: The Perspective of a Small Open Economy Bank of Canada Review - Spring 2017 Jean-Sébastien Fontaine, Lena Suchanek, Jing Yang How do unconventional monetary policies like quantitative easing and negative interest rates affect domestic financial conditions and the broader economy in small open econo-mies, such as Canada? These policies are effective in depreciating the exchange rate in small open economies, while lower interest rates are also passed through to the economy, albeit only partially. When conventional monetary policy is close to its limits, fiscal policy may be a more important complement to monetary policy in a small economy, particularly if global demand for safe assets compresses long-term interest rates. Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Interest rates, Monetary policy framework, Monetary policy implementation, Monetary policy transmission JEL Code(s): E, E5, E52, E58, E6, E61, E65
Canadian Bank Notes and Dominion Notes: Lessons for Digital Currencies Staff Working Paper 2017-5 Ben Fung, Scott Hendry, Warren E. Weber This paper studies the period in Canada when both private bank notes and government-issued notes (Dominion notes) were simultaneously in circulation. Because both of these notes shared many of the characteristics of today's digital currencies, the experience with these notes can be used to draw lessons about how digital currencies might perform. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Bank notes, Digital currencies and fintech, Financial services JEL Code(s): E, E4, E41, E42, E5, E58
Monetary Policy, Private Debt and Financial Stability Risks Staff Working Paper 2016-59 Gregory Bauer, Eleonora Granziera Can monetary policy be used to promote financial stability? We answer this question by estimating the impact of a monetary policy shock on private-sector leverage and the likelihood of a financial crisis. Impulse responses obtained from a panel VAR model of 18 advanced countries suggest that the debt-to-GDP ratio rises in the short run following an unexpected tightening in monetary policy. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Credit and credit aggregates, Financial stability, Monetary policy, Monetary policy transmission JEL Code(s): C, C2, C21, C23, E, E5, E52, E58
November 17, 2016 Recent Changes to the Bank of Canada’s Emergency Lending Assistance Policy Bank of Canada Review - Autumn 2016 Christopher Graham, Natasha Khan, Alexandra Lai Emergency Lending Assistance (ELA) is a discretionary last-resort collateralized loan or ad-vance by the Bank of Canada to eligible financial institutions (FIs) and financial market infrastructures (FMIs) facing serious liquidity problems. In December 2015, the Bank revised its ELA policy to (i) replace the requirement for an FI’s solvency with the requirement for a credible recovery and resolution framework; (ii) include mortgages as eligible collateral; and (iii) clarify both the eligibility requirements for FMIs and provincially regulated deposit-taking FIs. Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Financial stability, Financial system regulation and policies, Lender of last resort JEL Code(s): E, E5, E58, G, G0, G01, G2
November 17, 2016 Market Operations and Liquidity Provision at the Bank of Canada Bank of Canada Review - Autumn 2016 Mark de Guzman The Bank of Canada’s framework for market operations and liquidity provision describes how and when central bank liquidity might be offered with regards to the implementation of monetary policy and for supporting the stability of the Canadian financial system. Market participants can therefore plan their transactions knowing that the Bank stands ready to help manage system liquidity to support its objectives for monetary policy and financial stability. Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Financial markets, Financial stability, Monetary policy framework, Monetary policy implementation, Monetary policy transmission, Payment clearing and settlement systems JEL Code(s): E, E4, E42, E5, E52, E58, G, G0, G01
November 17, 2016 Reinventing the Role of Central Banks in Financial Stability Bank of Canada Review - Autumn 2016 Domenico Lombardi, Lawrence L. Schembri Central banks contribute importantly to the promotion of financial stability given their sys-tem-wide macro-financial perspective and existing roles as lender of last resort and overseer of systemic payment systems. Since the global financial crisis, the financial system role of central banks has expanded to place more emphasis on the prevention of financial stress and crises. Central banks work with other responsible authorities to enhance financial system resilience and to assess and mitigate financial vulnerabilities and systemic risk. Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Financial stability, Financial system regulation and policies, Lender of last resort, Monetary policy framework JEL Code(s): E, E4, E42, E5, E58, E6, E61, G, G2, G28
Leaning Within a Flexible Inflation-Targeting Framework: Review of Costs and Benefits Staff Discussion Paper 2016-17 Denis Gorea, Oleksiy Kryvtsov, Tamon Takamura This note examines the merits of monetary policy adjustments in response to financial stability concerns, taking into account changes in the state of knowledge since the renewal of the inflation-targeting agreement in 2011. A key financial system vulnerability in Canada is elevated household indebtedness: as more and more households are nearing their debt-capacity limits, the likelihood and severity of a large negative correction in housing markets are also increasing. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Financial stability, Monetary policy framework JEL Code(s): E, E0, E4, E44, E5, E52, E58, G, G1, G18
Starting from a Blank Page? Semantic Similarity in Central Bank Communication and Market Volatility Staff Working Paper 2016-37 Michael Ehrmann, Jonathan Talmi Press releases announcing and explaining monetary policy decisions play a critical role in the communication strategy of central banks. Because of their market-moving potential, it is particularly important how they are drafted. Often, central banks start from the previous statement and update the earlier text with only small changes. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Central bank research, Financial markets, Interest rates JEL Code(s): E, E4, E43, E5, E52, E58
On the Nexus of Monetary Policy and Financial Stability: Effectiveness of Macroprudential Tools in Building Resilience and Mitigating Financial Imbalances Staff Discussion Paper 2016-11 H. Evren Damar, Miguel Molico This paper reviews the Canadian and international evidence of the effectiveness of macroprudential policy measures in building resilience and mitigating financial imbalances. The analysis concludes that these measures have broadly achieved their goal of increasing the overall resilience of the financial system to the buildup of imbalances and increasing the financial system’s ability to withstand adverse shocks. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Credit and credit aggregates, Financial stability, Financial system regulation and policies JEL Code(s): E, E5, E51, E58, G, G1, G18, G2, G28
May 16, 2016 Estimating Canada’s Effective Lower Bound Bank of Canada Review - Spring 2016 Jonathan Witmer, Jing Yang Recently, the Bank of Canada has estimated the effective lower bound (ELB) on its policy interest rate to be about -50 basis points. This article outlines the analysis that underpins that estimate by quantifying the costs of storing and using cash in Canada. It also explores how some international markets have adapted to negative interest rates, issues surrounding their implementation, as well as their transmission to other interest rates in the economy. Finally, it discusses theoretical ideas on how the ELB could be reduced further. Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Monetary policy framework, Monetary policy implementation, Monetary policy transmission JEL Code(s): D, D5, D53, E, E4, E43, E5, E52, E58