Commercial banks spearhead $3.5bn forex purchases in Q3 2023
Total volume of forex purchases at the end of Q3 2023 per the Bank of Ghana’s Quarterly Economic Bulletin for Q3 2023, stood at $3,516 million.
Notably, commercial banks dominated forex purchases, constituting 91.3 percent of the total purchases with a significant contribution of $3,209 million.
The central bank’s role in supporting the market accounted for 7.2 percent ($251 million), while purchases from forex bureaux made up the remaining 1.5 percent ($55 million).
A comparative analysis with Q2 2023 reveals a 12.2 percent decrease in the overall volume of purchases.
A breakdown of this reduction indicates an 11.7 percent decline in commercial banks’ purchases, a 5.2 percent decrease in forex bureaux purchases, and a 19.2 percent contraction in the central bank’s support.
Regarding the total volume of forex sales, forex sales in Q3 2023 amounted to $3,582 million, with commercial banks responsible for 98.5 percent of this total, equivalent to $3,527 million. Forex bureaux contributed the remaining portion.
Compared to the previous quarter, there was a 10.9 percent decrease in the overall volume of sales. Additionally, when juxtaposed with Q3 2022, total sales exhibited a more pronounced contraction of 20.7 percent, indicative of evolving dynamics in the forex market over a yearly horizon.
The Bank of Ghana’s Q3 2023 Economic Bulletin provides a comprehensive insight into the forex market’s dynamics, underscoring the pivotal roles played by commercial banks, the central bank, and forex bureaux.
The observed quarterly contractions in both purchases and sales suggest an evolving landscape, necessitating a nuanced understanding for market participants, policymakers, and analysts navigating the intricacies of Ghana’s foreign exchange activities.
