Cash circulating in Mozambique hits record 70 billion meticais

Login

Register

http://www.clubofmozambique.com/

Cash circulating in Mozambique hits record 70 billion meticais

1:18 CAT | 21 Jan 2025

File photo: Lusa

The amount of physical money circulating in Mozambique increased again in November, for the seventh consecutive month, by 3% compared to October, to 69.358 billion meticais (€1.,052 billion), according to official data.

This value has already increased by 10% since the beginning of 2024, when 63.231 billion meticais (€959.1 million) in notes and coins were in circulation, and especially since May, before the new metical currency issue came into circulation. It reached its highest value of the year in November.

The withdrawal of money from circulation is a common practice of contractionary monetary policy. It reduces the money supply, and is often used by central banks to contain price increases.

Mozambique recorded a monthly increase of 1.6% in December, closing 2024 with inflation at 4.15%, according to data released by the Mozambican National Statistics Institute (INE).

On June 16, Mozambique introduced a new series of metical notes and coins, which will gradually replace those in circulation since 2006, the governor of the central bank announced.

“Central banks tend to review their notes and coins in circulation every five years, in order to adapt them to new trends in design, security and other contextual elements,” central bank governor Rogério Zandamela explained at the time.

“The theme of the metical notes and coins of the 2024 series maintains the tradition of extolling the values of our cultural, historical and wildlife heritage,” he stated.

The new series, launched on the Day of the Metical – the Mozambican currency was launched on June 16, 1975 – kept the previous six banknotes in circulation.

“The denominations of 1,000, 500 and 200 meticais are on paper substrate, and the denominations of 100, 50 and 20 meticais on polymer substrate,” Zandamela explained.

As for coins, the new series removed the denominations of 20 and five centavos, “keeping the denominations of 10, five, two and one metical, and those of 50, ten and one centavo”.

“The new metical notes and coins will circulate simultaneously with the series of notes and coins issued since July 1, 2006, which also continue to be mandatory legal tender and have full and unlimited liberating power within the national territory.”

Source: Lusa