The dramatic slowdown in industrial production, energy demand and transport activity in the first quarter of 2020 has led to significantly lower levels of air pollution, sparking debate on whether the coronavirus outbreak will lead to long-term shifts in consumer and industrial behaviours that could reorient economic policy towards sustainable...
A new banking sector report (March 2020) published by the Bank of Ghana has shown that more than half of banks’ deposits mobilised between February 2019 and February 2020 went into loans, an indication that banks are living up to their mandate of supporting the private sector with access...
Estimates suggest that between 40-70 per cent of the world’s population could become infected with the COVID-19 pandemic. The crisis has already transformed into an economic and labour market shock, impacting not only supply (production of goods and services) but also demand (consumption and investment).
All businesses, regardless of size,...
The Ghana Employers’ Association (GEA) has petitioned the Minister of Finance to establish an Emergency Fund from which businesses can access working capital, pay salaries and purchase raw materials for production as COVID-19 continues to bite hard.
The petition was drafted by the association after deliberations among its members on...
Without Asia’s buyers due to the Coronavirus pandemic, local cashew farmers and dealers say they are left with no option but to sell their raw nuts at giveaway prices.
The cash crop has been a supreme contributor to the country’s Non-traditional Exports (NTEs) earnings over the years, topping the list...
The decision to involve Rural and Community Banks in the distribution of funds from the COVID-19 stimulus package to businesses is both proper and timely. Together with the EXIM Bank and other commercial banks, the RCBs will ensure the stimulus package reaches all potential SMEs earmarked to receive the...
Stuck at home because of the lockdown, 25-year-old Ugandan Richard Kabanda is worried about feeding his family.
The motorbike taxi driver, who used to earn about $2 (£1.60) a day, has had no work since the government banned public transport last month as part of measures to slow the spread...
Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has acknowledged the adverse effects of COVID-19 on both local and global economies, saying it will result in low revenue mobilisation as prices of crude oil slump on the world market.
Dr. Bawumia said this when he launched the Universal QR Code and Proxy Pay...
Fast growth in e-commerce sales to consumers and cross-border purchases
More than 1.4 billion people shopped online in 2018
US, China and UK dominate e-commerce sales to consumers
E-commerce sales hit $25.6 trillion globally in 2018, up 8% from 2017, according to the latest available estimates released today by...
The country’s already struggling stock market has not been spared the impact of deadly coronavirus pandemic as a report by Databank Research shows that significant value has been wiped off the market once the first case was recorded in March.
The report, which analyses the economy for the first quarter,...