BOJ slashes benchmark CD rate

The Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) has slashed the rate offered on its benchmark 30-day Certificate of Deposit (CD) from 5.75 per cent to 5.5 per cent.

According to the Central bank, the adjustment to the policy rate reflects the Bank’s expectation that the rate of increase in consumer prices is likely to remain low in the coming year.

The BOJ says the recently announced inflation rate of four per cent for the last fiscal year is the lowest in 48 years. 

It says the sharper than expected decline in inflation for the fiscal year was due in part to the fall in oil prices but also to the moderation in price increases that has resulted from fiscal consolidation and economic reforms.

The BOJ says, the impact of these changes will help to moderate inflation impulses over the medium term.