Currency News [November 20, 2023]

The Cedi continued its struggles against its three major trading partner currencies at the week’s opening after the budget statement failed to clearly articulate measures the government intends to implement to revive the local currency. The Cedi opened the week weaker against the Dollar, the Pound, and the Euro as pressures on the local currency intensified on the Bank of Ghana (BoG) inter-bank trading platform.

The market was keenly awaiting hints as to the progress reached and when the expected forex inflows from the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the proceeds cocoa syndicated loan facility will hit Ghana’s accounts. The seeming silence on the progress of talks with bilateral lenders to secure financial assurances added to the Cedi’s troubles. However, commenting on the Cedi’s performance, the Finance Minister stated that the local currency’s relative stability in most parts of the year reflected the positive impact of the restoration of economic activity and confidence in the economy.

On the BoG inter-bank trading platform, the Cedi plunged by 0.27%, 2.14%, and 2.52% to opening the week trading at GHS 11.5668, GHS 14.4538, and GHS 12.6544 from last week’s opening trade quotes of GHS 11.5353, GHS 14.1515, and GHS 12.3432 respectively. The Pound and the Euro concurrently remained stronger against other peers buoyed by hawkish comments from policymakers from the two regions which sought to downplay speculations that rate cuts are just around the corner.

On the Open Forex Market (oanda.com), the Cedi gained marginally against the Dollar with a 0.01% surge to open the week at a trade value of GHS 11.9584 from last week’s opening trade quote of GHS 11.9595. The Dollar remained broadly weaker against a basket of currencies as a string of soft labor market and inflation readings have seen investors speculate that the Fed has reached the end of its rate-hiking cycle, and cuts are the next logical step. Against the Pound and the Euro, the Cedi plummeted by 1.93% and 2.24% from last week’s opening trade values of GHS 14.6507 and GHS 12.7850 to open this week trading at GHS 14.9331 and GHS 13.0708 respectively.

The Cedi was quoted at GHC 8.5903 on the first trading day of the year against the Dollar and is currently being sold at GHS 11.5668 indicating a YTD loss of 34.65% on the BoG inter-bank trading platform. It is also presently being quoted at GHS 11.9584 on the Open Forex Market (oanda.com) after opening the year at GHS 10.0825 indicating a YTD loss of 18.61%.