Staff discussion papers

• How Important Are Liquidity Constraints for Canadian Households? Evidence from Micro-Data

  Staff Discussion Paper 2012-9 Umar Faruqui, Samah Torchani

  Using a unique micro-dataset containing real and financial information on Canadian households for 2000–07, the authors address two questions: (1) What is the proportion of households whose consumption displays excess sensitivity to income, and who are likely liquidity constrained?

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Economic models, Sectoral balance sheet JEL Code(s): C, C3, C35, D, D1, D12, D3, D30

• Extracting Information from the Business Outlook Survey Using Statistical Approaches

  Staff Discussion Paper 2012-8 Lise Pichette

  Since the autumn of 1997, the regional offices of the Bank of Canada have conducted quarterly consultations with businesses across Canada. These consultations, summarized in the Business Outlook Survey (BOS), are structured around a survey questionnaire that covers topics of importance to the Bank, notably business activity, pressures on production capacity, prices and inflation, and credit conditions.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Business fluctuations and cycles, Regional economic developments JEL Code(s): C, C4, C43, C8, C82, E, E3, E37

• Canadian Bank Balance-Sheet Management: Breakdown by Types of Canadian Financial Institutions

  Staff Discussion Paper 2012-7 David Xiao Chen, H. Evren Damar, Hani Soubra, Yaz Terajima

  The authors document leverage, capital and liquidity ratios of banks in Canada. These ratios are important indicators of different types of risk with respect to a bank’s balance‐sheet management. Particular attention is given to the observations by different types of banks, including small banks that historically received less attention.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Financial institutions, Financial stability, Financial system regulation and policies JEL Code(s): G, G2, G21, G28

• The Bank of Canada’s 2009 Methods-of-Payment Survey: Methodology and Key Results

  Staff Discussion Paper 2012-6 Carlos Arango, Angelika Welte

  The authors present the methodology and main findings of the Bank of Canada’s 2009 Methods-of-Payment survey, a detailed investigation of consumer payment behaviour in Canada. The survey targeted the 18- to 75-year-old Canadian resident population.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Bank notes, Financial services, Payment clearing and settlement systems JEL Code(s): E, E4

• The U.S.-Dollar Supranational Zero-Coupon Curve

  Staff Discussion Paper 2012-5 Francisco Rivadeneyra

  The author describes the construction of the U.S.-dollar-denominated zero-coupon curve for the supranational asset class from 1995 to 2010. He uses yield data from a crosssection of bonds issued by AAA-rated supranational entities to fit the Svensson (1995) term-structure model.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Asset pricing, Financial markets JEL Code(s): G, G1, G12, G15

• A Note on Central Counterparties in Repo Markets

  Staff Discussion Paper 2012-4 Hajime Tomura

  The author introduces a central counterparty (CCP) into a model of a repo market. Without the CCP, there exist multiple equilibria in the model. In one of the equilibria, a repo market emerges as bond dealers and cash investors choose to arrange repos in an over-the-counter bond market.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Financial markets, Financial stability, Payment clearing and settlement systems JEL Code(s): G, G2, G24

• A Framework to Assess Vulnerabilities Arising from Household Indebtedness Using Microdata

  Staff Discussion Paper 2012-3 Ramdane Djoudad

  Rising levels of household indebtedness have created concerns about the vulnerabilities of households to adverse economic shocks and the impact on financial stability. To assess these risks, the author presents a formal stress-testing framework that uses microdata to simulate how various economic shocks affect the distribution of the debt-service ratio (DSR) for the household sector.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Econometric and statistical methods, Financial stability JEL Code(s): C, C1, C15, C3, C31, D, D1, D14, E, E5, E51

• Why Is Cash (Still) So Entrenched? Insights from the Bank of Canada’s 2009 Methods-of-Payment Survey

  Staff Discussion Paper 2012-2 Carlos Arango, Dylan Hogg, Alyssa Lee

  The authors present key insights from the Bank of Canada’s 2009 Methods-of-Payment survey. In the survey, about 6,800 participants completed a questionnaire with detailed information regarding their personal finances, as well as their use and perceptions of different payment methods.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Bank notes, Financial services JEL Code(s): D, D1, D12, E, E4, E41, L, L8, L81

• A Foreign Activity Measure for Predicting Canadian Exports

  Staff Discussion Paper 2012-1 Louis Morel

  The author constructs a measure of foreign activity that takes into account the composition of foreign demand for Canadian exports. It has a number of interesting features.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Topic(s): Balance of payments and components, Exchange rates, Recent economic and financial developments JEL Code(s): E, E0, E00, F, F1, F17