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Shortages of small change in early Argentina

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Abstract

In this note I review evidence suggesting that shortages of small change occurred in the territory of Argentina during the end of the eighteenth and the beginning of the nineteenth centuries. For the colonial period (until 1810) the main pieces of evidence are: (i) the widespread use of informal means of payment, (ii) the difficulties faced in retiring from circulation low quality subsidiary coins, and (iii) the numerous official resolutions banning the exporting of fractional money from the colonies. For the period from 1810 to 1825, the episodes surrounding the introduction of copper coins in 1821 and the issuing of low denomination circulating bank notes in 1823 appear as the main supporting evidence.

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  • Huberto M. Ennis, 2003. "Shortages of small change in early Argentina," Working Paper 03-12, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.
    • Handle: RePEc:fip:fedrwp:03-12
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Bordo, Michael D. & Vegh, Carlos A., 2002. "What if Alexander Hamilton had been Argentinean? A comparison of the early monetary experiences of Argentina and the United States," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(3), pages 459-494, April.
    2. Bordo,Michael D. & Cortés-Conde,Roberto (ed.), 2001. "Transferring Wealth and Power from the Old to the New World," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521773058.
    3. John Kareken & Neil Wallace, 1981. "On the Indeterminacy of Equilibrium Exchange Rates," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 96(2), pages 207-222.
    4. Wallace, Neil & Zhou, Ruilin, 1997. "A model of a currency shortage," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(3), pages 555-572, December.
    5. Wallace, Neil, 2003. "Modeling Small Change: A Review Article," Working Papers 9-03-3, Pennsylvania State University, Department of Economics.
    6. Hanson, John R, II, 1979. "Money in the Colonial American Economy: An Extension," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 17(2), pages 281-286, April.
    7. Libor Žídek, 2003. "Book Review," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 11(3), pages 593-596, September.
    8. Michael D. Bordo & Carlos A. Vegh, 1997. "If Only Alexander Hamilton Had Been Argentinean: A Comparison of the Early Monetary Experiences of Argentina and the United States," Departmental Working Papers 199511, Rutgers University, Department of Economics.
    9. Sargent, Thomas J & Velde, Francois R, 1999. "The Big Problem of Small Change," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 31(2), pages 137-161, May.
    10. Wallace, Neil, 2003. "Modeling small change: a review article," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(6), pages 1391-1401, September.
    11. Redish, Angela, 1984. "Why Was Specie Scarce in Colonial Economies? An Analysis of the Canadian Currency, 1796–1830," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 44(3), pages 713-728, September.
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    Keywords

    Money; Silver - Prices; Foreign exchange;
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