Emerging Markets Rates and Currencies Handbook

Jamaica (JMD - Jamaican Dollar) Citi in Jamaica Citi has operated in Jamaica since 1960, offering a wide array of first-class products. For more than 50 years, Citi Jamaica has been serving of more than 150 multinational corporations and their local subsidiaries, financial institutions, large local companies, as well as public sector and government institutions. Market Overview The local FX market is regulated by the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) under a free and floating FX system. BOJ intervenes in the market when deemed necessary. There is an active spot market for USDJMD that trades between USD30MM and USD40MM daily. A forward market also exists but flows are fairly episodic and not yet publicly available. The market exhibits seasonality where USD availability is lowered, particularly in the summer and last fewmonths of the year. These cycles are typically the result of a reduced tourism flows in summer months and a ramp up in imports to prepare inventories for the holiday season and dividend repatriation from multinationals. The other frequently traded currencies are GBP, CAD and EUR, with total daily volumes around USD 1MM to USD 3MM. The Bank of Jamaica publishes the spot trading information daily – volumes traded and weighted average buy and sell rates. Convertibility The Jamaica Dollar is freely convertible. Interest Rate Over the years, there has been little activity in the Rates market in Jamaica. However, appetite is increasing, and derivative based trades are being executed from small to medium sized volumes with an average ticket of US10MM. 226