For the first four months of the year, total exports declined marginally by 0.2% year-on-year to US$5,131 million, the Bank of Ghana (BoG) has said.
According to the BoG, this was driven mainly by a 21% decline in volume of gold exported attributed to instability in the sector.
Total imports, on the other hand, rose by US$239.3 million to US$4,372 million, supported by increased non-oil imports.
As a result, the trade balance recorded a surplus of US$759.1 million (1.1% of GDP) compared with a surplus of US$1,006.3 million (1.4% of GDP) in the same period of 2020.
Gross International Reserves stood at US$10,990.3 million at the end of April 2021, providing cover for 5.1 months of imports of goods and services.
The reserve level compares with a stock position of US$8,624.4 million, equivalent to 4.1 months of import cover recorded at the end of December 2020.
Cumulatively, the Ghana cedi appreciated by 0.5% against the US dollar in the year to April 2021, compared with a depreciation of 1.2% in the same period of 2020.
The Ghana cedi also appreciated by 2.4% against the Euro and depreciated by 0.6% against the Pound Sterling, compared with corresponding 1.4% and 3.7% appreciation over the same period in 2020.
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