THE Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) reported this week that a projected $321.6 billion in currency stock will be in public circulation by the end of December 2025, as the central bank moves to put an additional $21 billion into the hands of Jamaicans following the passage of Hurricane Melissa.

The increase represents annual growth of 12.4 per cent, compared with 3.1 per cent in 2024 when the currency stock totalled $300.6 billion. Currency stock refers to all Jamaican notes and coins held outside the BOJ. Currency issue, on the other hand, relates to the value of notes and coins issued by the central bank over a specific period. Some of these notes and coins are held by the public as currency in circulation, while others are retained by financial institutions as vault cash.

“The projected acceleration in growth in the currency stock for 2025 is consistent with the seasonal cash demand to support spending. Furthermore, in response to the impact of Hurricane Melissa, December’s currency growth is expected to reflect precautionary demand for cash, increase remittance receipts, and [result in] an expected increase in inflation,” the BOJ said in a recent bulletin.

“This is expected to be partly offset by dampened domestic demand conditions as a result of Hurricane Melissa,” the bank further noted.

The BOJ noted that while it issues and redeems notes and coins daily to meet demand from individuals and businesses, the significant increase in currency issue at this time stems not only from stronger demand typically seen in December due to holiday spending, but also from efforts to make available a larger pool of funds to support basic recovery activities.

For storm-affected households, however, the additional liquidity may offer limited relief as the funds will barely dent the more than US$8.8-billion in damage caused by the Category 5 hurricane which devastated mainly western parishes.

“In real terms, the currency stock is projected to increase by 7.2 per cent in December 2025, which compares to the real decline of 1.8 per cent for the previous year,” the BOJ said.

For the period December 1-11 the central bank reported that it had already issued $3.3 billion — an increase of 1.1 per cent — compared with $2.8 billion for the same period in 2024. As at December 11, 2025 total currency stock stood at $303.9 billion.