Front-runners to succeed Canada's Dodge

Carney is known to be well-liked by finance minister Jim Flaherty, who has the casting vote, but did not leave the central bank to universal acclaim after a stint as deputy governor.

One of the present deputy governors, Tiff Macklem, is a rising star, although possibly too young this time around. An interesting outside bet is Bill White, a thoughtful economist and good communicator, who leads the research department at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). Malcolm Knight, a former senior deputy governor of the central bank, has just had his term as head of the BIS extended until 2009, and so can be all but ruled out.

The senior deputy governor has frequently got the job in the past and Jenkins, who joined the central bank in 1972 and was appointed to his present post in April 2003, can be seen as a safe pair of hands. However, Dodge was of course an outsider when he became governor in 2001, when many thought that Knight would get the top slot after biding his time as senior deputy governor.

No firm date has been set for an announcement, which is expected in the autumn.