The Ghanaian Cedi has been ranked as the fourth worst-performing currency among the top 150 currencies tracked by Bloomberg globally.
The latest verdict on the Cedi comes after the Egyptian Pound, Nigerian Naira and the Lebanese Pound also experienced weakened performances.
According to recent data from Bloomberg, the Cedi depreciated by 0.2% to 14.9335 per dollar by the close of trading in Accra on Monday, June 10, 2024.
Since the beginning of the year, the local currency has declined in value by 20% against the US Dollar.
The recent record-low performance of the Cedi has been attributed to increased demand for the US dollar to purchase petroleum products, pharmaceuticals, and other imported goods.
Samantha Singh-Jami, Africa strategist at Rand Merchant Bank, stated that despite efforts to bolster foreign exchange reserves, liquidity constraints in the market persist.
Samir Gadio, head of Africa strategy at Standard Chartered Bank, mentioned that the Cedi’s depreciation reflects a mismatch in foreign exchange flows, with demand continuing to outpace supply.
“The cedi’s depreciation reflects a mismatch in foreign exchange flows. Despite a recovery in foreign exchange demand this year, it continues to outpace supply,” Gadio is quoted by Bloomberg.
Meanwhile, Ghana’s finance minister, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, has assured that the local currency will stabilize against the US dollar in the medium-term.
Source: www.ghanaweb.com
