Currency News for July 6th 2020

The Ghanaian Cedi at the start of the week fell across the board against its three major trading partner currencies on the Bank of Ghana (BoG) inter-bank trading platform. The Cedi further extended its losing streak against the US Dollar to the sixth week in a roll as risks posed by the coronavirus pandemic continue to weigh on emerging and developing economies. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its revised Regional Economic Outlook, countries in Sub Saharan Africa will experience a significant shrink mainly as a result of depressed economic activity.

The Cedi is expected to remain under intense pressure in the second half of the year as offshore investors continue to be wary of investments in the sub-region amidst fears of a resurgence in infection rates. As the government prepares to announce its mid-year budget review where it is expected that the government may either increase its borrowing or to introduce new taxes to bridge the widened fiscal gap, concerns remain that either of these alternatives may dump confidence in the local economy.

On the BoG inter-bank trading platform, the Cedi declined by 0.01%, 1.70%, and 0.65% to trade at GHC 5.6708, GHC 7.0800, and GHC 6.4113 at the start of the week from previous week’s trade values of GHC 5.6702, GHC 6.9619, and GHC 6.3701 against the Dollar, the British Pound Sterling, and the Euro respectively. The Dollar maintained its safe-haven appeal as fears of a new spike in coronavirus cases sent investors to take solace in the greenback.

On the Open Forex Market (oanda.com), the Cedi gained 0.10% adding onto previous week’s gain against the Dollar as it began the week trading at GHC 5.8061 as against previous week’s trade value of GHC 5.8122. Against the Pound and the Euro, the Cedi trade at GHC 7.2547 and GHC 6.5615 at the start of the week from previous week’s trade values of GHC 7.1631 and GHC 6.5380 respectively. The Pound rose this week against most of its trading pairs on news that the UK government was preparing a new spending plan that is set to revive the economy that has been worst hit by the pandemic.

According to the Bank of Ghana inter-bank rates, the Ghanaian Cedi began the year 2020 at GHC 5.5370 [January 2nd, 2020] against the US Dollar and is currently selling at GHC 5.6708 [July 6th, 2020] indicating a 2.42% year-to-date depreciation. Similarly, on the Open Forex Market (oanda.com), the Ghanaian Cedi traded at GHC 5.6961 [January 2nd, 2020] and is currently trading at GHC 5.8064 [July 6th, 2020], representing a 1.94% year-to-date depreciation of the Cedi against the US Dollar.