Crude oil prices remained broadly stable in June 2024 – Addison

Prices of Ghana’s major export commodities traded mixed on the international market, Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG) Dr Ernest Addison has said.

He said that cocoa price futures bounced back after declining by 19.2 percent in May 2024, to US$9,022.6 per tonne, representing 1.1 percent growth in June 2024.

Crude oil prices remained broadly stable in June 2024 with an average price of US$83.01 per barrel, he added.

Spot gold prices (the current market price of gold at which traders can perform over-the-counter trades with each other) however, dropped marginally by 1.1 percent to close at an average price of US$2,325.34 per fine ounce in June 2024.

The trade balance improved in the first half of the year driven by higher exports relative to imports.

“The trade surplus improved to US$1.81 billion in the first half of the year, compared to the surplus of US$1.60 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2023. Total exports increased by US$1.01 billion to US$9.23 billion, while imports rose by US$884.5 million to US$7.42 billion,” Dr Addison said at the 119th Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) press conference in Accra on Friday, July 26.

Regarding the the banking sector, Dr Addison said that the performance in the first half of the year points to continued recovery from the impact of the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme.

He indicated that total banking sector assets grew by 33.3 percent to GH¢323.1 billion at end-June 2024, relative to 21.2 percent growth at end-June 2023. Profitability, liquidity, and efficiency indicators also improved over the period.

The Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) adjusted for reliefs remained unchanged at 14.3 percent, between June 2023 and June 2024, he said.

Without reliefs, he added, the CAR was reported at 10.6 percent in June 2024, higher than the 7.4 percent recorded in June 2023.

“Despite improvements in the banking sector’s performance, elevated credit risk poses a threat to the sector’s recovery process,” he noted.

The industry’s Nonperforming loans (NPL) ratio was 24.1 percent in June 2024, up from 18.7 percent in June 2023.

“The consistent rebound in profits, adherence to recapitalisation plans, and enforcement of strict credit underwriting standards will help ensure that banks remain on the path to full recovery and resilience,” Dr Adison said