— Japan Oct M3 Money Stock +2.0% Y/Y Vs Sep Unrev +2.1%
TOKYO (MNI) – Japan’s money stock, measured by the key M2 aggregate, rose 2.7% y/y in October, slowing from a 2.8% rise in September and in August, the Bank of Japan said on Tuesday.
Money stock growth had accelerated in the March-May period, reaching a recent peak of 3.1% in May, but remained below the record rise of +3.4% marked in October 2009.
Japan’s M3 money stock aggregate rose 2.0% y/y, also slowing from a 2.1% rise in September.
Like M2, M3 growth peaked in May — at 2.3% — and has decelerated slightly since.
M3 growth hit a record growth of +2.4% in October and November 2009.
The October M2 growth came in slightly lower than the consensus call of a 2.8% rise. The M3 figure was also slightly weaker than the average economist forecast of a 2.1% rise.
In June 2008, the BOJ changed its measures for money supply data in lined with the privatization of Japan Post Bank Co. in October 2007.
The central bank has created the M3 category, which comprises M2 plus certificates of deposits and deposits at the postal bank, credit unions and agricultural cooperatives among other lenders.
The BOJ now calls its main money supply measure simply M2, replacing the previous M2 plus CDs designation.
The BOJ continues to focus on both M2 and M3 data to gauge economic activity at the moment as the bank has no long-term historical data on the M3 aggregate yet.
Quasi-money — cash equivalent and other assets that are easily convertible into cash — rose 0.3% in October from a year earlier, slowing from the 0.7% rise in September.
The narrow measure of money supply, M1, which consists of currency in circulation and deposit money, rose 2.9% on year in October, after rising 2.3% in the previous month.
Certificates of deposit were up 25.5% in October, after rising a revised 28.8% (preliminary +28.6%) in September.
tokyo@marketnews.com
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