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
May 14, 2002 International Financial Architecture and the Resolution of Financial Crises Remarks David Dodge Canadian Club of Ottawa and the Canadian Institute of International Affairs Ottawa, Ontario The preamble to the Bank of Canada Act calls on us to promote the economic and financial welfare of Canada. In this context, we aim to foster good economic performance through monetary stability - that is to say, through low, stable, and predictable inflation. But no market economy can function properly unless it is also supported by an efficient and stable financial system. Content Type(s): Press, Speeches and appearances, Remarks
May 14, 2002 Bank of Canada Governor Reviews Progress in Strengthening International Financial Architecture and Resolving Financial Crises Media Relations Ottawa, Ontario Mr. Dodge stressed that in an interconnected world, Canada's open economy is very much affected by world events - hence, our strong interest in a healthy international financial environment. Content Type(s): Press, Press releases
May 9, 2002 Canadian Consul General's residence Remarks David Dodge Luncheon at the Canadian Consul General's residence Chicago, Illinois In Canada, the economic weakness that we experienced was really concentrated in the third quarter of last year, particularly in September. The terrorist attacks in September created a great deal of uncertainty, and so the Bank of Canada, like the U.S. Federal Reserve, provided an extraordinary amount of stimulus by aggressively lowering interest rates. Content Type(s): Press, Speeches and appearances, Remarks
Entrepreneurship, Inequality, and Taxation Staff Working Paper 2002-14 Césaire Meh This paper confirms the conjecture that the evaluation of tax policy leads to very different conclusions once the role of entrepreneurs is considered. Contrary to previous literature, the author finds that switching from a progressive to a proportional income tax system has a negligible effect on wealth inequality in the United States. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Economic models, Fiscal policy JEL Code(s): D, D3, D31, E, E6, E62, H, H2, H20, H23
Towards a More Complete Debt Strategy Simulation Framework Staff Working Paper 2002-13 David Bolder An effective technique governments use to evaluate the desirability of different financing strategies involves stochastic simulation. This approach requires the postulation of the future dynamics of key macroeconomic variables and the use of those variables in the construction of a debt charge distribution for each individual financing strategy. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Debt management, Econometric and statistical methods, Interest rates JEL Code(s): C, C0, C5, G, G0
Modelling Financial Instability: A Survey of the Literature Staff Working Paper 2002-12 Alexandra Lai The magnitude and frequency of recent financial crises underscore the importance of understanding financial instability for the purpose of crisis prevention and crisis management. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Financial institutions, Financial markets, Financial services JEL Code(s): G, G2, G20, G21, G28
April 30, 2002 Opening Statement before the Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce Opening statement David Dodge Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce To counter that uncertainty and bolster consumer and business confidence, the Bank of Canada moved aggressively to provide monetary stimulus. Between last September and January 2002, we lowered interest rates by 200 basis points, bringing the total reduction since January 2001 to 375 basis points. Content Type(s): Press, Speeches and appearances, Opening statements