Hyperinflation/Archive

Cases / World War II / Philippines

Philippines
1942–1945

The Japanese occupiers paid for what they took with a peso they printed themselves, which Filipinos nicknamed "Mickey Mouse money".

60%prices in the worst monthJanuary 1944
44.9 daysfor prices to doubleat the peak (Hanke & Krus)
Jan – Dec 1944above 50% a monththe hyperinflation itself
1banknotes in the collectionJapanese Occupation Peso

Currency reform: Withdrawn at liberation (1945) · Cause: Occupation money printed by the Japanese army · Resolution: Liberation; the occupation peso became worthless

In short

Hyperinflation was measured: 60 % in January 1944, prices doubling every 44.9 days (H&K, who call the currency "Japanese War Notes"). By 1944 a box of matches cost more than 100 of these pesos. At liberation the currency was withdrawn and worth nothing.

The curve

No exchange-rate chart for this case yet: no series we could source month by month. The figures that matter are in the text and the key figures below, each with its source.

What happened

The events in order, with the banknotes at the date on them.

1942
The occupation peso is issued (1 centavo to 10 pesos).
dated
1942
10 centavos, Japanese occupation (1942)
10 centavos, Japanese occupation (1942)
1943–1945
100, 500 and 1,000-peso notes are added as prices climb.
Jan 1944
The peak month, 60 % (H&K).
Dec 1944
The episode ends in the H&K table.

Context: why it happened

  • An occupier paying with its own paper. The notes had no reserve and could not be redeemed; the army issued them for supplies and labour.
  • Japan claimed a monopoly on money. Holding guerrilla currency was outlawed, and offenders were arrested or executed (Wikipedia). Two currencies competed anyway.

How it ended

The currency did not end through a reform: it ended with the army that issued it. Savings held in occupation pesos were simply lost.

Consequences & lessons

  • An occupation currency is a tax on the occupied, collected through prices.
  • People kept a parallel money (pre-war pesos, guerrilla notes) as long as they dared.

The banknotes

10 centavos, Japanese occupation (1942)
10 centavos, Japanese occupation (1942)

The data

figurevaluesource
Hyperinflation (≥ 50%/month)Jan – Dec 1944H&K
Peak monthJanuary 1944H&K
Peak monthly inflation60.0 %H&K
Doubling time at peak44.9 daysH&K
Price examplea box of matches > 100 pesos (1944)Wikipedia (Japanese government-issued Philippine peso)
Price example75 pesos (≈ US$35 of the time) for one duck eggWikipedia (same)
Largest note1,000 pesos (1945)Wikipedia (same)
Case data (JSON)Banknotes (ZIP)
Cite this case
“Philippines 1942–1945”, Hyperinflation Archive, hyperinflation.rogzy.org/philippines-1942-1945/ (2026). Figures: Hanke & Krus (2012) and the sources listed below.

Sources

  1. Hanke & Krus (2012) — episode, peak, doubling time.
  2. Wikipedia, "Japanese government-issued Philippine peso" (read 2026-10-05): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_government-issued_Philippine_peso

H&K = Hanke, S. H. & Krus, N. (2012), World Hyperinflations, Cato Institute Working Paper no. 8.