Gross Reserves: Ghana’s imports cover decline from 4.3 months to 2.9 months
Ghana’s imports cover has declined from 4.3 months to 2.9 months according to recent data provided by the Central Bank.
The decline in imports cover, the Central Bank, has attributed to the decline in the country’s gross international reserves by some $3.1bn.
According to the Central Bank, the country’s stock of Gross International Reserves declined to $6.6 billion, equivalent to 2.9 months of import cover for goods and services in September 2022.
This compares with the December 2021 position of $9.7 billion, equivalent to 4.3 months of import cover.
The Net International Reserves, which excludes encumbered assets and petroleum funds, the Bank noted, is estimated at $2.7 billion as at September 2022.
The decline in the country’s gross reserves is despite the $1.7bn trade surplus recorded in August 2022.
The trade surplus exceeded the $892.4m trade surplus recorded same period last year – August 2021.
According to the BoG, increment in the trade surplus was driven by higher receipts from gold, crude oil and non-traditional exports, notwithstanding increased
demand for oil and gas imports.
Total exports went up by 19.5 percent year-on-year to $11.8 billion. Crude oil exports totalled $3.8 billion, 56.5 percent higher than observed in 2021, mainly due to price effects.
Gold export earnings also went up by 23.9 percent to $4.2 billion, supported by increased production volumes triggered by the positive response from small scale gold exporters to the downward revision of the withholding tax regime from 3 percent to 1.5 percent.
However, on account of lower prices and low cocoa purchases, cocoa receipts declined by 22.8 percent to $1.7 billion from $2.1 billion.
Total merchandise imports grew by 12.9 percent on a year-on-year basis to $10.2 billion, mainly driven by higher oil and gas import bill of $3.1 billion at end-August 2022, relative to $1.7 billion in the same period of 2021. Non-oil imports, however, dipped by 3.8 percent year-on-year to $7.1 billion in the review period.
