-
TEXT
The Bank of Canada commodity price index (BCPI) is a chain Fisher price index of the spot or transaction prices in U.S. dollars of 24 commodities produced in Canada and sold in world markets. Commodity weights are updated on an annual basis using recent commodity production data.
Crude oil, natural gas, coal
Aluminum, potash, gold, copper, iron, nickel, zinc, silver, lead.
Lumber, wood pulp, newsprint
Wheat, cattle, canola, hogs, barley, corn, potatoes.
Shellfish, Ocean fish. a
a. In the Fisher BCPI, fisheries products are aggregated into two weight categories: shellfish (clams/quahaug, scallops, lobster, shrimp, crab) and ocean fish (salmon, cod, halibut, herring, tuna).
Note: The weights for the years 2009 -12 are based on the 2008 Statistics Canada input-output tables, and are thus fixed over this period.
Data in CSV formatTo calculate the index weights, Statistics Canada’s input-output tables are employed as the primary source of production values. Specifically, Statistics Canada has a data collection system that compiles data from multiple sources, including surveys, other federal departments, and tax records, to produce its input-output tables. The input-output tables are also supplemented with data from other sources. For instance, information on mineral prices and production volumes is used to generate value indexes that are employed to interpolate the value of production in years when input-output data are suppressed. Information on agricultural products is taken from other Statistics Canada data series available on CANSIM. Data for fisheries are obtained from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, while additional data on mineral production are taken from the Canadian Minerals Yearbook (both of these sources are used by the input-output system to calculate commodity production).
The prices for many of the commodities in the index are the averages of daily data. Prices for some commodities are available only weekly (these are usually available several weeks after the reference period) or monthly (usually available two months after the reference period). When data for the reference period are not immediately available, the most recent available data are repeated until the actual data are received. The series are revised when the actual data become available.
Recent BCPI data are published in Table H9 of the monthly Bank of Canada Banking and Financial Statistics publication. The weekly series are the averages for the five business days ending with the Wednesday. The monthly series are the averages for all days in the month.