THE JAMAICA Chamber of Commerce yesterday described the recent slip of the Jamaican dollar beyond the $50-mark to the US dollar, as nothing but a "seasonal" swing associated with the Christmas season.
"The current movement of the Jamaican dollar against the US dollar is not unexpected. In recent years we have tended to see the value of the US dollar peaking in early December, prior to the inflows associated with the winter tourism season," said Michael Ammar, Jr., president of the Chamber.
"Generally, after this peak, the dollar has tended to stabilise so that by the end of the year or by early January, the rate has more or less moved back to normal," he added.
He explained that to the extent that the Bank of Jamaica was successful in discouraging speculation, there was no reason to fear that this year would be any different.
He said the movement of the Jamaican dollar against the US dollar may affect prices of some consumer items depending on how heavily payables were made in US dollars. The Jamaican dollar fell on Tuesday to a value of $50.03 to the US dollar with market players saying the new low was of no major significance.
