Gold outperforms other major trading commodities in export receipts for the first half of the year

Gold outperforms other major trading commodities in export receipts for the first half of the year.

Gold continues to make significant gains as the major contributor to Ghana’s export receipts. Available data from the Bank of Ghana (BoG) indicate that gold export receipts recorded at the end of June amounted to US$3.02 billion as compared to US$2.7 billion for the same period in 2021 representing a 13% increase.

The increase in gold export receipts can be attributed to the increase in gold production by both large and small-scale mining companies as well as the steadily rise in gold prices between January and March.

International price of gold as at June this year was US$1,837.1 per fine ounce (after declining from US$1,949.4 in March) indicating a 0.1% increase comparing it to that of June the previous year which stood at US$1,835.1 per fine ounce.

The international price of gold is however likely to further reduce in the second half of the year considering the projected decline in global demand for gold occasioned by the expected reduction in the demand for gold jewellery in China and India due to COVID lockdowns and the increase in gold import duties respectively as reported by the World Gold Council.

Oil Exports

Oil export receipts at the end of the first half of the year stood at US$2.8 billion, representing a growth of about 56% from US$1.8 billion the same period in 2021.

The growth in oil export receipts has been mainly occasioned by the recent increase in international oil prices jumping from US$73.3 to US$117.2 per barrel between June 2021 and June 2022 representing a 60% increase.

Cocoa Exports

The BoG’s data however revealed a decline in cocoa export receipts at the end of the first half of the year as compared to the same period in 2021. Cocoa export receipts plummeted at 22% from US$1.8 billion in June 2021 to US$1.4 billion at the end of June this year.

The decline in cocoa export receipts could be attributed to the decline in cocoa production considering the marginal change in price of cocoa between June last year and this year. The price of cocoa as at the end of June this year stood at US$2428.4 per tonne marking a slight increase of 0.9% comparing it to the price as at June last year which was US$2407.5 per tonne.

The highest price of cocoa recorded in the first half of the year was in February where the commodity was sold at US$2681.1 per tonne.