quarterly_to_monthly_rule

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Axis quarterly_to_monthly_rule on sub-layer l2_a (layer l2).

Sub-layer

l2_a

Axis metadata

  • Default: 'step_backward'

  • Sweepable: True

  • Status: operational

Operational status summary

  • Operational: 3 option(s)

  • Future: 1 option(s)

Options

linear_interpolation – operational

Linear interpolation between quarterly observations.

Smoother than step_backward but introduces look-ahead unless used per-origin.

Configures the quarterly_to_monthly_rule axis on l2_a (layer l2); the linear_interpolation value is materialised in the recipe’s fixed_axes block under that sub-layer.

When to use

Studies with smooth quarterly series and per-origin alignment.

References

  • macroforecast design Part 2, L2: ‘preprocessing is the only layer with a strict A→B→C→D→E execution order; every cell follows the same pipeline.’

Related options: step_backward, chow_lin

Last reviewed 2026-05-04 by macroforecast author.

step_backward – operational

Step-function: each month inherits the most-recent published quarterly value.

When a quarterly series needs to align with a monthly target, macroforecast holds the quarterly observation constant for all three months of the quarter (with a 1-quarter publication lag where appropriate). Conservative: no smoothing, no extrapolation.

When to use

Default for FRED-SD mixed-frequency studies.

References

  • macroforecast design Part 2, L2: ‘preprocessing is the only layer with a strict A→B→C→D→E execution order; every cell follows the same pipeline.’

Related options: step_forward, linear_interpolation, chow_lin

Last reviewed 2026-05-04 by macroforecast author.

step_forward – operational

Step-function: each month inherits the next-published quarterly value.

Use when later observations are informative for current state (rare in real-time work).

When to use

Hindsight-feasible studies (e.g., counterfactual nowcasts).

References

  • macroforecast design Part 2, L2: ‘preprocessing is the only layer with a strict A→B→C→D→E execution order; every cell follows the same pipeline.’

Related options: step_backward, linear_interpolation

Last reviewed 2026-05-04 by macroforecast author.

chow_lin – future

(no schema description for chow_lin)

TBD: option doc not yet authored for this value. The encyclopedia falls back to the bare schema description above. PRs adding a full OptionDoc entry under macroforecast/scaffold/option_docs/l2.py are welcome.