Ghana Cedi depreciated by 12.9% to the dollar in 2019
- Ghana’s cedi continues to depreciate against the dollar as the government’s fiscal challenges erode investor confidence
- The cedi was down 12.9% in 2019, according to data from the BoG
- Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in
The Ghana Cedi has seen a decline in value compared to the foreign currencies in 2019.
According to information from the Bank of Ghana’s website, the cedi ended 2019 with a depreciation rate of 12.9% compared to the US dollar.
The figures on the BoG website also indicate that the 12.9% depreciation rate is the highest since 2015.
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In 2015, the cedi declined by more than 15%. In 2016, it depreciated by 9.2%, 4.45% in 2017, 8.8% in 2018 and 12.9% in the just-past year.
The central bank figures suggest that the Ghana Cedi traded between GHS5.530 and GHS5.536 to the US dollar on December 31, 2019, but, was sold at GHS5.80 at the forex bureau.
In the cause of 2019, the cedi had been cushioned from rapid decline by the issuance of the US$3 billion Eurobond in March 2019 and subsequent US$1.5 billion Cocobod syndication in August 2019.
This move by government brought some dollars into the country, and once there was inflow of dollars in the Ghanaian economy, the cedi stopped depreciating fast.
But this was not sustainable, as the cedi began depreciating again in November 2019.
Meanwhile, some economists have expressed optimism that the depreciation of the cedi will be curtailed by government and managers of the economy in 2020.
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Their hope is due to the fact that the BoG will be selling dollars via the FX forward auction.
The Bank of Ghana announced that it will auction US$715 million in Forward Foreign Exchange Auctions in the whole of 2020.
YEN.com.gh earlier reported that the Year of Return, 2019, is an initiative of the government of Ghana.
President Nana Akufo-Addo, in September 2018, declared that Ghana was going to welcome and encourage African diasporans to come to Africa to settle and also invest in the continent.
Also, the Year of Return was a year-long campaign which was climaxed in December 2019.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
