Cedi fall worst in 3 years – Adongo

Bolgatanga Central MP Isaac Adongo has said that “the cedi is on its worst performance against the major trading currencies in the last three years”.

Critics have blamed government policies for the weakening of the cedi against the U.S. dollar.

The cedi has narrowly neared the GHS5 to $1 rate.

Basing his verdict on data he analysed from the Bank of Ghana, the minority MP said the figures show a “worsening depreciation of the cedi”.

Mr Adongo said on Wednesday, 26 September that the year-on-year performance of the cedi in August 2016 to 2018 as well as the cumulative performance for the same period – January to August 2016 and January to August 2018 – shows clearly that the “cedi has depreciated significantly against the major trading currencies in cumulative terms, from January to August 2018”.

He stated that: “While the cedi experienced marginal year-to-date depreciation of 2.51 per cent against the U.S. Dollar in August 2016, it experienced a higher depreciation of 4.53 per cent in the same period in 2017”.

Per his analysis, the “2016 depreciation, however, more than doubled to an alarming rate of 6.53 per cent in August 2018”.

Furthermore, he pointed out that: “The cumulative analysis of the depreciation of the cedi against the dollar from January to August shows a consistently worsening cedi, with a depreciation from 3.8 per cent in 2016 to 4.5 per cent in 2017 and 6.5 per cent in 2018”.

In terms of the Pound Sterling, the MP stated that the “cedi deteriorated from a stronger position in 2016, when it appreciated by nine per cent to depreciate at 8.24 per cent in 2017 and 2.7 per cent in 2018”.

In his view, “Although the cedi has recovered from its collapse against the British Pound, it is still worse off than the strong performance in 2016. Yet, Vice-President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia claims the cedi is in the best it has ever been”.

Against the Euro, he said the cedi depreciated by over 15 per cent in the same period in 2017 compared to a depreciation of 5.16 per cent in the same period in 2016.

“Although it has improved in 2018, it is a herculean task for it to recover the 15 per cent per cent depreciation experienced in 2017. Yet again, Dr Bawumia says the cedi is in top form,” he concluded.