Prima: The Bank of Canada’s New Projection and Policy-Analysis Model—An Overview Staff analytical paper 2026-47 Donald Coletti, Martin Kuncl, Martin Harding, Dmitry Matveev, Tolga Özden, Yang Zhang Prima is the Bank of Canada’s new model for projection and policy analysis. It builds on the economic foundations of earlier Bank models, adding detail on how sectoral pressures affect production costs and their pass-through to consumer prices. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): C, C4, C43, C8, C82, E, E3, E30, E31, E37 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Econometric, statistical and computational methods, Monetary policy, Inflation dynamics and pressures, Real economy and forecasting
Sector-based producer price indexes: New measures of producer price pressures in Canada Staff analytical paper 2026-46 Yena Joo, Ali Rouhghalandari, Vivian Chu, Xin Ha Producer price indexes measure changes in the prices that producers receive for their outputs or that they pay for their inputs. Statistics Canada publishes a range of producer price indexes for specific products and industries. For the first time, these series have been combined into a small set of broad sectoral measures. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): C, C4, C43, C8, C82, E, E3, E30, E31, E37 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Econometric, statistical and computational methods, Economic models, Monetary policy, Inflation dynamics and pressures, Real economy and forecasting
Why asking rents have surged in Canada since 2021 Sparks at Bank article Benjamin Straus Renting has become significantly more expensive in Canada in recent years. Asking rents—those advertised for vacant units—rose sharply as demand grew faster than supply. As tenants move and sign new leases, changes in asking rents gradually spread to the average rents captured in the consumer price index. Content Type(s): Staff research, Sparks at Bank article Research Theme(s): Monetary policy, Inflation dynamics and pressures, Real economy and forecasting, Structural challenges, Demographics and labour supply
Labor Markets, Financial Crises, and Inflation: Jobless and Wageless Recoveries* Staff working paper 2026-31 Guillermo Calvo, Emilio Colombi, Fabrizio Coricelli, Pablo Ottonello We document the macroeconomic patterns that characterize labor market recovery from financial crises. Using a sample of postwar recession episodes from around the world, we show that financial crises are typically followed by jobless recoveries, with a sluggish recovery in employment relative to output. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): E, E2, E3, E31, E4, E44, F, F3, F32 Research Theme(s): Monetary policy, Inflation dynamics and pressures, Real economy and forecasting
Tracking Heterogeneous Spending Patterns with Credit Card Microdata Staff analytical paper 2026-38 Jia Qi Xiao, Jackson Reid, Joey Daniels We present a measure of account-level credit card spending constructed using credit bureau microdata, capturing monthly spending for approximately 80% of adults in Canada. Our measure offers higher frequency than other publicly available consumption metrics, and can be disaggregated by age, geographic location and credit history. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): C, C5, C55, C8, C81, D, D1, D14, E, E2, E21, E3, E32, G, G5, G51 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial stability and systemic risk, Financial system regulation and oversight, Household and business credit, Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting
Seeing the Economy through Colored Glasses: Partisanship in Macro and (not in) Micro Expectations Staff working paper 2026-24 Adrian Monninger, Kyung Woong Koh, Tao Wang Households report distinctive views of the macroeconomy along partisan lines, while their expectations about personal finances do not follow the same pattern. Economic inequality remains the major contributor to polarized views of the macroeconomy. Partisan politics are simply a magnifier. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): E, E2, E21, E3, E30, E7, E71 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Econometric, statistical and computational methods, Monetary policy, Monetary policy framework and transmission, Real economy and forecasting
Monte Carlo Likelihood-Ratio Tests for Markov Switching Models Staff working paper 2026-23 Gabriel Rodriguez Rondon, Jean-Marie Dufour This paper develops Monte Carlo likelihood-ratio tests for determining the number of regimes in Markov switching models. Unlike most existing procedures, which focus on testing one versus two regimes, the proposed methods allow testing an arbitrary number of regimes. They are valid in finite samples, robust to identification problems, and applicable to nonstationary, multivariate, and Markov switching GARCH models. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): C, C1, C12, C15, C2, C22, C3, C32, C4, C46, C5, C52, E, E3, E32 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Econometric, statistical and computational methods, Economic models, Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting
Measuring the AI Economy Staff working paper 2026-20 Anton Korinek, Patrick McKelvey We construct a macroeconomic estimate of total AI production in the United States, combining inference and R&D/training activities with quality adjustments to account for algorithmic progress. We then develop a nascent framework for "AI GDP" that tracks the AI economy as a coherent whole, complementing traditional national accounts. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): C, C4, C43, E, E0, E01, E2, E22, E3, E31, O, O3, O33, O4, O47 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Econometric, statistical and computational methods, Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting, Structural challenges, Digitalization and productivity
Assessing global potential output growth: April 2026 Staff analytical paper 2026-20 Daniel de Munnik, Kristina Hess, Walter Muiruri, Tuuli McCully, Faiza Noor, Sabreena Obaid, Andrew Plummer, Louis Poirier, Abeer Reza, Jillian Schwartz We present the annual update of the Bank of Canada staff estimates for global potential output growth. These estimates served as key inputs to the analysis supporting the April 2026 Monetary Policy Report. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): E, E1, E2, F, F0, F1, O, O3, O33, O4 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Econometric, statistical and computational methods, Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting, Structural challenges, Demographics and labour supply, Digitalization and productivity
Potential output in Canada: 2026 assessment Staff analytical paper 2026-19 Alex Chernoff, Christopher Hajzler, Stéphanie Houle, Gabriella Ruggero, Olena Senyuta, Karanbir Sohal, Walter Steingress, Temel Taskin Growth in potential output is expected to drop from 2.3% in 2025 to 1.2% in 2026 given slowing population growth, US tariffs and trade policy uncertainty. It is then estimated to pick up to an average of 1.5% over 2027–29 as strengthening business and government investment supports trend labour productivity (TLP). Gradual adoption of artificial intelligence is also expected to lift TLP growth over the projection horizon. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): E, E2, E3, E4, E5 Research Theme(s): Models and tools, Economic models, Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting, Structural challenges, Demographics and labour supply