The woes of the Ghana cedi continued as it depreciated further to about ¢13.75 to the US dollar less than a day, after reaching ¢13 on October 19.
This is equivalent to about 12% depreciation in only four days of this week.
The local currency is also depreciating faster than the pound and euro. It is selling presently at about ¢14.05 to the pound and ¢12.10 to the euro.
Checks by Joy Business at some top forex bureaus in the capital, Accra, indicate that there is an acute shortage of US dollars.
Again, quite a number of the banks do not have enough dollars to undertake forex transfers and other related businesses.
A Treasurer with one of the international banks who spoke to Joy Business on condition of anonymity said the situation is getting worse every day, urging the authorities to act fast.
Another senior executive of one of the Nigerian banks operating in Ghana said the free fall of the cedi to the dollar has triggered hoarding of the US dollars, thus intensifying demand for the American ‘greenback’.
Most forex bureaus sold the local currency between ¢12.50 and ¢12.95 to the dollar yesterday, October 19, 2022.
The free fall of the cedi has already triggered protests by some traders who claim their cost of doing business has been surging week-on-week.
For now, the only hope for the depreciation of the cedi to slow down and strengthen at a point against the US dollar is the announcement of the economic programme by the International Monetary Fund.
$1 dollar nears ¢13 as fast depreciation of cedi continues
The Ghana cedi reached ¢13 to a dollar yesterday, October 19, 2022, as the free fall of the local currency continued unabated.
Cedi lost 9% value to dollar in only a week
The Ghana cedi lost 9.03% in value to the US dollar last week (October 10-October 14, 2022).
This came after the investment market reacted to the September 2022 inflation (37.2%).
The cedi also lost 5.15% and 6.87% in value to the pound and the euro respectively.
Credit: Joy News
