Inflation Rate Worsens to 37.2% in Ghana
Amidst buckets of downgrades, the headline inflation rate has worsened to 37.2% in Ghana, according to latest data from the statistics office.
The bureau reports that consumer inflation in Ghana climbed to 37.2% year on year in the month of September 2020 from 33.9% in August, according to an official report released on Wednesday.
With macroeconomic uncertainties that follow Russian-Ukraine war, Ghana has been unable to access the international debt capital market – the country’s debt position has worsened.
Global ratings agencies downgraded the country’s issuer default rating as its bond inches nearing junk ratings. However, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is working with the government for a lifeline to support its government finances.
Ghana is battling with multiple issues, including fiscal slippage, a high debt profile with attendant service costs and a worsening price level that has affected costs and standard of living.
The central bank has hiked its lending rate by 10 percentage points since the start of the year in an attempt to hold back inflation and slow the cedi currency’s rapid depreciation. READ:Ghana Inflation Jumps Further to 33.9% in August
The cedi has been Africa’s worst performing currency since the beginning of the year, the World Bank said last week.
Net foreign reserves dwindled to around $2.7 billion in September from $6.1 billion in January, and the balance-of-payments deficit was just shy of $2.5 billion in the first half of the year.
# Inflation Rate Worsens to 37.2% in Ghana#
