Debit card transactions on the decline
ABM withdrawals and point-of-sale (POS) transactions using plastic instead of cash has been trailing behind year-earlier levels since last December — both in terms of number of transactions and value.
What’s more, the monthly rate of decline since this April has been increasing.
According to Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) data, ABM and POS transaction volumes during each month between last December and July this year have on average been 11 per cent lower than year-earlier levels.
Similarly, transaction values during each month have on average been four per cent lower than comparative months in 2009.
Since April, when the decline in trasaction volumes was recorded at 9.3 per cent and transaction values were six per cent lower, each month has seen a bigger decline than the previous one.
* In May, volumes declined by 12.9 per cent and values declined by 6.1 per cent;
* In June, volumes declined by 13.6 per cent and values declined by 6.7 per cent; and
* In July, volumes declined by 17.3 per cent and values declined by 17.4 per cent.
It is not yet clear, if the data reflects a reduction in disposable income available to consumers or if Jamaicans have become better savers.
The Jamaican economy contracted in real terms from year-earlier levels by 1.4 per cent and 0.8 per cent during the first quarter and second quarters of 2010, respectively, but thousands of jobs were already lost from 2009, when the economy declined by 2.8 per cent last year.