For the week leading up to the Christmas holidays (December 12 – 16), Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) issued currency of $8.7 billion more than it redeemed from the financial system.

This net currency issue represented an increase of 4.1 per cent in the total stock of currency for the week. The 4.1 per cent increase in the currency stock was higher than the 3.3 per cent increase for the corresponding week in 2021.

The net currency issue for the week under review translated to an increase of $14.0 billion or 6.8 per cent in the currency stock for the period December 1- 16, 2022. The increase, which was in line with the Bank’s projection for an expansion of 6.8 per cent for the period, was higher than the net currency issue of 5.6 per cent for the corresponding period in 2021.

As at December 16, the stock of currency was $220.1 billion, representing an annual nominal growth of 1.9 per cent, relative to growth of 23.0 per cent at the corresponding point in 2021. When the forecasted change in the general level of consumer prices for 2022 is considered, the currency stock in real terms is estimated to have declined for the period by 8.0 per cent, compared to real growth of 14.6 per cent for the same period of 2021.

As previously stated by the BOJ in its December 15 press release, the currency stock is projected to increase in December 2022 by $21.5 billion (10.4 per cent) relative to the previous month to reach a level of $227.6 billion.