Ghana Q1 gold output up 9 percent

Ghana's gold output in the first quarter of 2009 was 675,151 ounces, up 9 percent on the first three months of last year, while higher world prices pushed cumulative mining revenue up 11 percent to $641.2 million, Chamber of Mines data showed on Saturday.

Ghana, the world's no.2 cocoa producer, is also Africa's second biggest gold miner after South Africa.

It produced 2.6 million ounces of the precious metal in 2008, when total mining revenues were $2.2 billion.

"There are prospects for increased output in the gold sub-sector this year," said Jurgen Eijgendaal, president of the chamber. "The resources are available -- the mines are putting in more and we expect production to go up."

Bauxite shipments also went up 41 percent, earning the country 49 percent more in revenue, but manganese output fell 30 percent. Gold accounted for 96 percent of Ghana's minerals revenue last year.

Many investors see gold as a safe store of value, and it has performed strongly during the global financial downturn. Gold futures rose above $980 per ounce on Friday to end the day's business close to a three-month high.