TIG Post

Tag: crisis

  • Ghana records 3rd consecutive trade surplus amid economic crisis

    Ghana records 3rd consecutive trade surplus amid economic crisis

    Ghana has sustained a trade surplus, continuing to export more than it imports since last year, according to the Second Quarter Trade Statistics from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS).

    However, the report noted a slight dip in export values, which fell to GH¢5.4 billion between April and June 2024. This represents a significant decline compared to the first half of 2023.

    Gold continued to dominate Ghana’s exports, contributing GH¢37.0 billion (57.6%) to the total export value in the second quarter of 2024. Gold’s share of exports rose by nearly 10%, from 47.5% in the second quarter of 2023 to 57.6% in the same period in 2024.

    The United Arab Emirates (UAE) overtook Switzerland as Ghana’s top destination for gold exports, receiving 39.9% of the total, followed by Switzerland (35.6%), South Africa (16.2%), and India (7.5%).

    Cocoa exports saw a sharp decline of approximately GH¢4.0 billion between the first and second quarters of 2024, marking the fifth consecutive quarterly decrease. This decline reflects a contraction in the cocoa sector, consistent with recent GDP data.

    On the import side, China remained Ghana’s largest trading partner, accounting for GH¢12.3 billion (20.9%) of total imports.

    The report noted a continued rise in imports from Asia, contrasted with a decline in imports from Europe, signaling a significant shift in Ghana’s trade patterns.

    Government Statistician, Professor Samuel Kobina Anim, emphasized the upward trend in prices for both exports and imports during the quarter. Export prices surged by 40.5% year-on-year, largely driven by higher gold prices, while import prices also saw an 18.9% increase.

    This pattern of rising costs in both sectors underscores the evolving dynamics of Ghana’s trade relations and its economic positioning on the global stage.

    “In the computation of nominal and real trade values, we have denominated it in cedis. The more than doubling of the nominal values were from GH¢46.3 billion around the second quarter of 2021 to the current figure of GH¢123 billion, so we have adjusted for price changes from a cedi-denominated perspective”, he explained.

  • Muslim-majority countries in Beijing for negotiations over Israel-Hamas crisis

    Muslim-majority countries in Beijing for negotiations over Israel-Hamas crisis

    China invited leaders from Arab and Muslim countries to talk about calming down the fighting between Israel and Hamas. China wants to help stop the fighting.

    The Foreign Minister of China met with officials from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, the Palestinian National Authority, Indonesia, and the head of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in the capital on Monday.

    Beijing said the visit is a chance for talking and working together to calm down the fighting between Palestinians and Israelis, protect people, and fairly solve the problem of Palestine.

    The meeting is happening because the media has been told that there might be a deal soon to free some hostages held by Hamas. The United States, Israel, and Qatar have been talking to Hamas for weeks to try to make this deal happen.

    Beijing and Washington, who are both strong in the region and friends with Israel, disagree on how to handle the conflict. Beijing did not support Israel’s actions and did not speak out against the group Hamas, making Israeli officials upset.

    Israel has started bombing and sending troops into Gaza because a group called Hamas attacked Israel on October 7th. The Israel Defense Forces said that more than 200 people were taken as hostages in the attack.

    China wants to help solve the conflict so it can become a stronger global power.

    Last week, the UN made a decision about the fighting. They want all the people that Hamas is holding as prisoners to be set free right away. They also want to make sure that safe paths are available for people in the area so that they don’t get hurt. The US and the United Kingdom didn’t vote, because they didn’t agree with the resolution’s failure to criticize Hamas.

    Chinese Ambassador Zhang Jun said that for reasons everyone knows, especially because a permanent member of the Council kept causing problems, this resolution can only be a first step for now, based on the minimum agreement. This seemed like a hidden criticism aimed at the US.

    The conflict has allowed China to strengthen its relationships with many Arab countries and to become an important advocate for creating a separate Palestine and achieving lasting peace.

    Chinese and visiting officials will talk about how to start the peace process again when they meet in Beijing on Monday and Tuesday.

    China’s special envoy for the Middle East, Zhai Jun, visited Egypt, Qatar, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Jordan last month. He talked about important issues during his 10-day tour. This included discussing the Qatar issue.

    Last week, the representative visited Turkey and Bahrain to meet with officials. In addition, Zhai talked about the situation in the region with representatives from Singapore, the US and Europe at a conference.

    Zhai hasn’t visited Israel, Palestine, or Iran, according to the information from China’s Foreign Ministry. Last month, Wang and Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen talked on the phone. It’s not known if China has talked to Hamas leaders during the recent fighting.

    This week, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki from the West Bank-based Palestinian National Authority is visiting officials in Beijing.

    Earlier this month, China sent the leader of its Foreign Ministry’s department for West Asia and North Africa to Iran to talk about the conflict. This was mentioned in a post on the department’s WeChat social media account.

    Iran has been supporting Hamas and Hezbollah for a long time.

    Last week, Chinese leader Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden had a long conversation in California. Biden asked Xi to use China’s influence with Iran to prevent a bigger conflict in the region. This was said by a top US official to the media.

    In the meeting, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said they have already talked to the Iranians about the topic.

    The US thinks Hamas is a terrorist group that has caused pain for Palestinian people. The US supports Israel in fighting against Hamas.

    Beijing is talking about the conflict between Palestinians and Israelis, without mentioning Hamas.

  • Central bank details extent of economic problems in Sri Lanka

    Central bank details extent of economic problems in Sri Lanka

    The greatest economic catastrophe to hit Sri Lanka in more than 70 years has been detailed by the central bank of the island nation

    In its annual report, the bank outlined how last year wages failed to keep up with the soaring cost of everything from food to fuel.

    “Several inherent weaknesses” and “policy lapses” helped to trigger the severe economic problems that engulfed the South Asian nation, the bank says.

    The bank now expects the economy to return to growth next year.

    The Central Bank of Sri Lanka forecast the economy will shrink by 2% this year, but expand by 3.3% in 2024.

    The prediction is more optimistic than the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which forecast a contraction in 2023 of around 3% and growth of 1.5% next year.

    The central bank’s report also outlined how headline inflation reached almost 70% in September as prices of fresh fruit, wheat and eggs more than doubled.

    At the same time the cost of transportation and essential utilities such as electricity and water rose even faster.

    Last year, the economy shrank by 7.8% and the country defaulted on its foreign debt for the first time since independence from the UK in 1948.

    Defaults happen when governments are unable to meet some or all of their debt payments to creditors.

    This damaged its reputation with lenders, making it even harder to borrow money on the international markets.

    “The Sri Lankan economy faced its most onerous year in its post-independence history,” the report said.

    An “unsustainable” economic model “steered the country towards a multifaceted disaster,” it added.

    Sri Lanka owes about $7bn (£5.7bn) to China and around $1bn to India. In February, both countries agreed to restructure their loans, giving Sri Lanka more time to repay them.

    Last month, the IMF agreed to lend Sri Lanka $3bn. That was on top of a $600m loan from the World Bank last year.

    Sri Lanka’s government is currently negotiating its debt repayments with bondholders and creditors before the IMF reviews the situation in September.

  • DR Congo crisis: Cessation of hostilities starts Friday

    African leaders have declared a cessation of hostilities to start on Friday in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo where M23 rebels have been making substantial gains in recent months.

    The statement was signed at the end of a mini-summit in Angola’s capital, Luanda, attended by the Rwandan foreign minister and the presidents of the DR Congo, Angola and Burundi.

    The signatories agreed an East African regional force would attack M23 positions if the rebels did not withdraw immediately from occupied areas.

    There has been no word so far from the M23.

    The US has welcomed the roadmap

    outlined in the Luanda summit and urged Rwanda to end its support to the M23.

    DR Congo accuses Rwanda of backing the rebels, who have been advancing on the regional capital, Goma. Rwanda denies involvement.

    The Luanda summit saw leaders from DR Congo and Rwanda meeting for the first time following a diplomatic fallout sparked by the raging conflict in the mineral-rich region.

    Source: BBC

  • Ghana’s economy moving from crisis to crisis – John Mahama

    Former President John Dramani Mahama has observed that Ghana’s economy has lurched from crisis to crisis.

    In a Facebook post, the former President said the crisis has ultimately resulted in the most debilitating living conditions in several decades.

    He added that within a space of ten months, our currency, the Ghana Cedi, has depreciated by over 62% against the US dollar.

    “In the last few years, our economy has lurched from crisis to crisis, ultimately resulting in the most debilitating living conditions in several decades. Within a space of ten months, our currency, the Ghana Cedi, has depreciated by over 62% against the US dollar, which is the highest in recent memory,” Mahama posted on Facebook today 4th November 2022.

    This statement comes after the Former President John Dramani Mahama on Thursday, October 27, 2022, addressed the nation.

    Speaking at the UPSA Auditorium, Mahama touched on the current economic hardships sweeping across the land, high inflation rates and the depreciation of the cedi.

    Mr. Mahama urged government to cut down on expenditure by reducing the number of appointees and ministers.

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    He also advised government to abolish or realign state institutions with similar functions while suspending non-essential projects.

    The 2020 flagbearer of the NDC also backed calls for the dismissal of the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta from office; adding that his removal will not affect the ongoing negotiations between Ghana and the IMF.

    “Our public debt is projected to hover around GH¢ 522 billion by close of this year, with a corresponding debt to GDP ratio of above100%. The debt service obligation arising from this, is monstrous and, is making it impossible to finance almost all critical sectors of the economy.”

    “The wage bill has gone up due to unbridled recruitment into all sectors of the public service resulting from a poor capacity of the private sector to mop-up the teeming youth graduating from all levels of our educational system.”

    “Worse still, Ghana has been classified as the country with the highest likelihood of debt default, which reflects the multiple downgrades by the international credit agencies. As it stands, we remain firmly shut out of the international bond market,” excerpts of Mahama’s speech said.

    Source: atinkaonline.com

  • How Speaker linked cedi appreciation to calls for Ofori-Atta’s sack

    Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin has said the cedi appreciation is due to the calls for the removal of the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.

    According to him, since the minority filed a motion to have Ken Ofori-Atta removed, Ghanaians have regained confidence that action has been taken to curb the economic crisis.

    “Because of this motion, you know what has happened to the state of our Cedi. Just because people are given confidence that action is being taken, the Cedi gained some value, and parliament should be commended. It climbed from about 16 to a dollar to around 13, which is a serious gain for this country, and it’s because there is some confidence being given to the people that action is being taken to rectify the wrongs. Please let’s play our role properly and effectively, and at the end of the day, we’ll all benefit,” he told MPs on Thursday.

    On October 27, the speaker of parliament Rt. Hon. Alban Bagbin admitted the minority’s Censure Motion filed against Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta.

    This comes after Members of Parliament on the Minority side signed their signatories to a motion for a vote of censure on Ken Ofori-Atta, the Finance Minister, filed on Monday.

    The Minority cites the overall mismanagement of the economy and ethical concerns, among others.

    The motion was filed a day before Parliament resumed recess.

    The admission of the motion is contained in the Order Paper of Parliament, issued on Thursday, October 27, 2022.

    The House is expected to organize “a secret vote” to censure the Minister. This is scheduled for November 10, 2022.