June 4, 2002 Bank of Canada raises overnight rate target by 1/4 percentage point to 2 1/2 per cent Media Relations Ottawa, Ontario The Bank of Canada today announced that it is raising its target for the overnight rate by one-quarter of one percentage point to 2 1/2 per cent. The operating band for the overnight rate is correspondingly increased, and the Bank Rate is now 2 3/4 per cent. Content Type(s): Press, Press releases
Does Exchange Rate Policy Matter for Growth? Staff Working Paper 2002-17 Jeannine Bailliu, Robert Lafrance, Jean-François Perrault Previous studies on whether the nature of the exchange rate regime influences a country's medium-term growth performance have been based on a tripartite classification scheme that distinguishes between pegged, intermediate, and flexible exchange rate regimes. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Exchange rate regimes, Exchange rates, Monetary policy framework JEL Code(s): F, F3, F31, F33, F4, F43, O, O4, O40
A Market Microstructure Analysis of Foreign Exchange Intervention in Canada Staff Working Paper 2002-16 Chris D'Souza This paper clarifies the role and the impact of foreign exchange dealers in the relationship between foreign exchange intervention and nominal exchange rates using a unique dataset that disaggregates trades by dealer and by type of trade. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Exchange rates, Financial institutions, Financial markets JEL Code(s): F, F3, F31, G, G1, G14, G2, G21
Corporate Bond Spreads and the Business Cycle Staff Working Paper 2002-15 Zhiwei Zhang This paper examines the predictive power of credit spreads from the corporate bond market. The high-yield bond spread and investment-grade spread can explain 68 per cent and 42 per cent of output variations one year ahead, while the term spread based on government debts can explain only 12 per cent of them. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Financial markets, Monetary and financial indicators, Monetary policy transmission JEL Code(s): E, E3, E5, G, G1
May 24, 2002 Convocation address Remarks David Dodge Graduating class of the Faculty of Engineering Queen's University Kingston, Ontario Queen's motto is Sapientia et Doctrina Stabilitas, which we generally translate as "Wisdom and knowledge shall be the strength of thy times." This motto is especially pertinent to you as engineers graduating today. Content Type(s): Press, Speeches and appearances, Remarks
May 21, 2002 Inflation and the Macroeconomy: Changes from the 1980s to the 1990s Bank of Canada Review - Spring 2002 David Longworth Over the last 10 years, the level of inflation has been much lower than in the previous two decades. At the same time, the behaviour of inflation has changed profoundly. By surveying the data and the economic research, the author first examines changes in the variability, growth rates, and behaviour of some of the major macroeconomic variables during the 1980s and 1990s. He then looks at how these changes are linked to a shift in the approach of monetary policy over the period. Lastly, he reviews the economic benefits that these changes have had for Canada. Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Business fluctuations and cycles, Credibility, Inflation targets, Inflation: costs and benefits
May 21, 2002 Bank of Canada Review - Spring 2002 Cover page Japanese Hansatsu The notes on the cover range in value from 5 ryo to 50 mon and date from the late eighteenth century to the mid-nineteenth century. The largest measures 5.5 by 16.8 centimetres. All four pieces are part of the National Currency Collection, Bank of Canada. Photography by James Zagon, Ottawa. Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review
May 20, 2002 Trends in Productivity Growth in Canada Bank of Canada Review - Spring 2002 Allan Crawford This article describes the major trends in the growth of labour productivity in Canada since the early 1960s and summarizes our current knowledge about the causes of the historical patterns. Particular attention is given to the period since the mid-1990s during which productivity growth has been significantly higher in the United States than in Canada. The author reviews the empirical evidence on the contribution of information and communication technology to the recent difference between Canadian and U.S. rates of productivity growth. Other determinants of a country's productivity performance, such as human capital formation and openness to international trade, are also examined. The article concludes with an assessment of the prospects for an increase in the trend rate of productivity growth in Canada over the coming years. Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Productivity
May 19, 2002 Private Capital Flows to Emerging-Market Economies Bank of Canada Review - Spring 2002 Jean-François Perrault This article explores the evolution of capital flows to emerging markets over the last 30 years with emphasis on the past decade. Capital markets in emerging-market economies have evolved substantially over the period, becoming increasingly deep and resilient. The author looks at how capital flows to these countries have changed in terms of magnitude, geographical distribution, the financial instruments used, and the country of origin. He also examines how changes in the investor base have affected these flows and reviews the factors underlying the growth of private capital flows in the 1990s. Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Development economics
May 18, 2002 Foreign Takeovers and the Canadian Dollar: Evidence and Implications Bank of Canada Review - Spring 2002 Lawrence L. Schembri Since 1995, acquisitions of foreign firms by Canadian residents and acquisitions of Canadian firms by foreign residents have increased. Through most of this period, the dollar has depreciated, but the cumulative net balance of foreign direct investment acquisition flows has remained close to zero. The recent upward trend in bilateral acquisition flows is part of the globalization process as firms consolidate and rationalize their operations, and is not related to the value of the Canadian dollar. Standard models of international asset pricing imply that there should not be a relationship between the Canadian exchange rate and foreign takeovers of Canadian firms because an exchange rate movement does not give foreign buyers a systematic advantage over domestic buyers. Purchases of domestic firms by foreign residents are likely to be welfare-improving. Transactions between foreign and domestic residents are voluntary, and they imply that the foreign buyers expect to obtain higher profits from the firms' assets. Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Exchange rates