Ghana’s total export earnings have experienced a notable decline of nine percentage points. As of August 2023, the total exports amounted to US$10.76 billion, a reduction from the US$11.81 billion recorded in August 2022.
Despite maintaining a trade surplus for the year in review, there was a substantial decrease in total exports, amounting to approximately US$1 billion, representing a nine percent drop. The trade surplus reached US$2.06 billion, surpassing the US$1.56 billion recorded in August of the previous year.
Gold remained the dominant contributor to Ghana’s total exports, showing an increase from US$4.22 billion to US$4.67 billion. Conversely, all other export categories contracted. Cocoa exports decreased slightly from US$1.61 billion to US$1.60 billion, while oil exports experienced a significant decline from US$3.82 billion to US$2.65 billion. Other exports also saw a slight decrease from US$2.16 billion to US$2.11 billion.
In terms of the trade surplus’s contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP), there was an improvement, with the trade balance to GDP ratio reaching 2.6 percent, up from 2.1 percent in 2022.
However, Ghana’s imports decreased from US$10.25 billion to US$8.74 billion, encompassing both oil and non-oil imports, resulting in a positive trade balance.
Source:Omanghana.com