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Quarterly Financial Report - First Quarter 2017 - For the period ended 31 March 2017

Prices change all the time, and some change more often than others. How often prices change can affect how quickly shifts in economic conditions affect inflation.

Bank staff conduct analysis and research to identify and mitigate systemic risks that might impair the functioning of the financial system. The results are published once a year in the Financial Stability Report.

Quarterly Financial Report - First Quarter 2016 - For the period ended 31 March 2016

Governor Tiff Macklem speaks by videoconference at the Public Policy Forum’s Sustainable Finance 2 Roundtable

On June 1, the Bank of Canada decided to increase its policy interest rate by half a percentage point. Speaking the next day, Deputy Governor Paul Beaudry explains why inflation has been higher than expected and what we are doing to get it back to our 2% target.

An economy with fixed amortization mortgages and borrowing-constrained consumers leads to the level of inflation targeted having real effects on home ownership, consumption, and debt. Using a life-cycle housing tenure choice model, we show that by front-loading real mortgage payments, higher inflation lowers steady-state home ownership and the mortgage-debt-to-income ratio.

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.

While greater global financial integration is beneficial, the authors discuss how foreign capital inflows can also facilitate the buildup of domestic vulnerabilities and potentially lead to destabilizing reversals. Canada’s current international investment position is typical of advanced economies and will likely continue to act as an economic stabilizer. However, the growth and composition of Canada’s international investment position warrant continued monitoring.