Ghana Records Trade Surplus From GH23bn Deficit To GH24bn

Ghanaians imported products from 191 countries in the first half of the year, 47 countries more than the countries they exported to, the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) has disclosed.

In its second trade report for the first half of the year, the GSS said imports originated from 191 distinct countries, while exports were directed towards 144 countries.

The Government Statistician, Professor Samuel Kobina Annim, who presented the report of thorough overview of trade statistics, also revealed that gold and mineral fuels and oils were the leading exports in the first half of 2022 and 2023.

At the African Statistics Day 2023 yesterday on the theme: "Modernising Data Ecosystems to Accelerate the Implementation of the AfCFTA: The Role of Official Statistics and Big Data in the Economic Transformation and Sustainable Development of Africa”, Prof. Annim said the countryrsquo;s trade dynamics had undergone a noteworthy transformation, marked by a trade surplus of GHcent;2.4 billion in the first half of 2023, in contrast to the trade deficit of GHcent;2.3 billion in the same period of 2022.

He said the value of both exports and imports were higher in the first half of 2023 by GHcent;24.3 billion and GHcent;19.6 billion respectively, with trade flow in the first half suggesting that 2023 imports and exports were substantially higher than in the same period in 2022.

In terms of food imports into the country, he said Canada was the leader in wheat, while Brazil was the largest for sugar and meat, and Vietnam for rice.

He said the main food imports were cereal and grains, frozen cuts and offal of fowl and sugar.

“In the first half of 2023, the total value of Ghanarsquo;s exports to African countries was GHcent;19.3 billion, representing almost a quarter (22.0 per cent) of total exports.
“Imports to other countries were GHcent;7.7 billion, which is less than half the value of exports to African countries,” he added.

He said African countries were the destination of 22 per cent of all of the countryrsquo;s exports globally, and the source of 9.1 per cent of all imports, suggesting untapped potential for intra-African trade.

He said the report demonstrated that there were countless trade possibilities within the regional bloc.

Trade report
The Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, also addressing the event, said the world was undergoing rapid transformation with profound implications for trade.

He said the GSS had initiated a process to measure informal cross-border trade which held significance for African economies.

“The measurement of informal cross-border trade has become a practical requirement, especially for the African Continental Free Trade Area.

A thorough trade data is needed for fostering economic development, improving trade policies and ensuring the well-being of communities engaged in such activities.

The Director of the Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER), Prof. Peter Quartey, said it was quite striking that the country imported a lot of grain from Canada.

“Even if we import, why donrsquo;t we import from Uganda that has surplus grain maize at a lower price?” he asked.

He urged the country to consume what was grown locally to check the effect on the exchange rate, saying anything short of that would not be good for the economy.

“We should be independent.

I think we are becoming too dependent on imported commodities, which doesnrsquo;t augur well for us,” he said.

Background
The GSS last Tuesday released a mid-year trade report for the first half of 2023 at a ceremony in Accra.

The report is the second in the series published by the service to provide for the first half of the year, and to offer valuable insights for decision makers.

The report also builds on the 2022 Trade Vulnerability Report already released by the GSS and offers additional statistics on the countryrsquo;s external trade with specific focus on food and intra-African trade.