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Nowcasting GDP: Electronic Payments, Data Vintages and the Timing of Data Releases

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  • John W. Galbraith
  • Greg Tkacz

Abstract

We describe and assess the usefulness of a newly-constructed database of electronic payments, comprised of debit and credit card transactions as well cheques that clear through the banking system, as indicators of current GDP growth. Apart from capturing a broad range of spending activity, these variables are available on a very timely basis, thereby making them suitable candidate indicators. Controlling both for the release dates of various variables and the vintage of GDP available to analysts at the time a nowcast is produced, we generate nowcasts of GDP growth for a given quarter over a span of five months, which is the period over which interest in nowcasts would exist. We find that nowcast errors fall by about 60 per cent between the first and final nowcast. Evidence on the value of the additional payments variables is mixed, however; the point estimates suggest reductions in forecast loss at some nowcast horizons, but with considerable variability.

Suggested Citation

  • John W. Galbraith & Greg Tkacz, 2013. "Nowcasting GDP: Electronic Payments, Data Vintages and the Timing of Data Releases," CIRANO Working Papers 2013s-25, CIRANO.
    • Handle: RePEc:cir:cirwor:2013s-25
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    File URL: https://cirano.qc.ca/files/publications/2013s-25.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. George Kapetanios & Fotis Papailias, 2018. "Big Data & Macroeconomic Nowcasting: Methodological Review," Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE) Discussion Papers ESCoE DP-2018-12, Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE).
    2. Juan de Dios Romero Palop & Juan Murillo Arias & Diego J. Bodas-Sagi & Heribert Valero Lapaz, 2019. "Determining the usual environment of cardholders as a key factor to measure the evolution of domestic tourism," Information Technology & Tourism, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 23-43, March.
    3. Tony Chernis & Rodrigo Sekkel, 2017. "A dynamic factor model for nowcasting Canadian GDP growth," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 53(1), pages 217-234, August.
    4. Duarte, Cláudia & Rodrigues, Paulo M.M. & Rua, António, 2017. "A mixed frequency approach to the forecasting of private consumption with ATM/POS data," International Journal of Forecasting, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 61-75.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    GDP; nowcasting; electronic payments;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E32 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Business Fluctuations; Cycles
    • E37 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Forecasting and Simulation: Models and Applications
    • C53 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling - - - Forecasting and Prediction Models; Simulation Methods

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