GDP grows at softest pace in three years in Q3

GDP growth eased, falling to 2.0% year on year in the third quarter, from 3.2% in the second quarter. Q3's reading marked the softest growth in three years. On a seasonally adjusted quarter-on-quarter basis, economic growth waned to 0.5% in Q3, from the previous quarter's 0.7% expansion.

The industrial sector contracted 4.3% annually in the third quarter, a larger drop than the second quarter's 1.8% decrease and marking the worst result since Q2 2021. In addition, the agricultural sector lost steam, growing 5.9% in Q3 (Q2: +6.0% yoy). Services sector growth also fell to 5.5% in Q3, marking the worst result since Q3 2022 (Q2: +6.3% yoy).

On the outlook, analysts at the EIU commented: “Real GDP growth will pick up in 2024 […] as election-related government spending emerges as a major driver of expansion. Import demand will continue to contract, reflecting constrained private consumption. The recommissioning and expansion of the Bibiani gold mine in western Ghana, which achieved its first gold pour in July 2022, will boost export earnings, however.”

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