| Japan's monetary base up 5.6% year-on-year in February |
| Date: 2011/3/4 Click: 2205 |
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The monetary base in Japan rose 5.6 percent in February from a year earlier, rising for the 30th consecutive month from a 5.5 percent annual increase booked in the previous month, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) said in a report on Wednesday.
The average daily balance of the monetary base stood at 101.0039 trillion yen (1.23 trillion U.S. dollars), with the current account deposit balance expanding 23.3 percent after increasing 24. 5 percent in January, the central bank said.
The bank's data also showed reserve balances rose by 19.7 percent in the recording period.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, however, the monetary base dipped 2.1 percent on year in February to 100.906 trillion yen, following a 9.9 contraction on year logged in the previous month, coming in at 101.08 trillion yen, the BOJ noted.
Banknotes in circulation were up 2.4 percent on year, although coins in circulation declined an annual 0.1 percent in February from a year earlier, the central banks's data showed.
Japan's monetary base refers to the amount of currency that is either circulated in the hands of people living in Japan or in domestic commercial bank deposits held in the central bank's reserves.
This measure of the money supply typically only includes the most liquid currencies and the Japanese administration maintains a relatively high degree of control over the monetary base by buying and selling government bonds in the open market.
The central bank maintaining very accommodating monetary policies has helped facilitated the increase in Japan's monetary base in February. |
