KEY POINTS
- Ghana export earnings reach $17 billion by August.
- Trade surplus rises to $6.1 billion.
- Cedi appreciates 21 percent year-to-date, among strongest globally.
Ghana’s export earnings rose to $17 billion by the end of August, buoyed by a surge in gold and cocoa shipments, according to new central bank data.
Figures from the Bank of Ghana’s September Economic and Financial Data, released Monday, showed gold exports topping $11.7 billion, almost double last year’s levels. Cocoa also rallied, bringing in $2.4 billion compared with $915 million a year earlier. Oil was the drag, sliding to $1.8 billion from $2.7 billion.
Imports ease on lower oil demand
On the import side, Ghana spent $11.7 billion in the first eight months of the year, up slightly from $10.7 billion last year. Oil imports fell sharply to $3.7 billion from $10.2 billion, offset by higher non-oil imports, which climbed to $8 billion from $7 billion.
The shift pushed the country’s trade surplus to $6.1 billion, underlining what officials describe as a more favorable external balance.
Reserves remain strong despite dip
Gross international reserves stood at $10.7 billion at the end of August, down from $11.1 billion in June. The figure still provides about four and a half months of import cover, Bank of Ghana Governor Johnson Asiama said at a briefing ahead of the central bank’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting.
Cedi shines among global peers with Ghana export.
Asiama pointed to robust gold receipts and stronger cocoa exports as the key drivers behind the external position. He acknowledged seasonal pressures on the cedi and softer remittance inflows in recent weeks but emphasized that the currency remains one of the world’s best performers this year, appreciating 21 percent as of Sept. 12.
