Executive summary
In February, the broad monetary aggregate (private M3) registered a contraction of 1.1% in real terms
and without seasonality. At the component level, the fall was mainly concentrated in
means of payment, particularly in transactional demand deposits. On the
other hand, interest-bearing deposits (demand and fixed term) presented little significant variations, in a context
in which Money Market Mutual Funds remained without major changes
both in terms of their equity and the composition of their assets.
In line with the behavior of the demand for money, the Monetary Base contracted 0.8% in
real terms and adjusted for seasonality. Comparing the balance at the end of February with that of the end
of the first month of the year, it registered a decrease of $1.8 billion. Although the monetary authority’s purchase of
foreign currency was a primary factor in money creation (in February it acquired USD1,557 million,
accumulating a total of USD2,715 million in the first two months of the year), its effect was
more than offset by the contraction associated with the operations of the treasury and the operations
of the BCRA in the secondary market.
Finally, credit in pesos to the private sector remained relatively stable at constant
prices and without seasonality, after two consecutive months of expansion. At the level of the large
lines of credit, commercial lines showed an increase that was offset by the contraction
of consumer credit. In year-on-year terms, they accumulated growth of around 19.8% and
stand at 8.9% of GDP.
