That estimated dollar amount results from an -4.9% decline compared to the $17.1 billion worth of exported goods in 2018.
Year over year, total sales of Ghana’s exports gained 5.4% from $15.4 billion in international sales during 2021.
Based on the average exchange rate for 2022, the Ghanaian cedi has diluted by -80.4% against the US dollar since 2018 and decreased by -42.5% from 2021 to 2022. Ghana’s weaker local currency made Ghanian exports paid for in stronger US dollars relatively less expensive for international buyers.
Major Trade Partners Importing Ghana’s Exports
The latest available country-specific data is from 2019. Those statistics shows that over four-fifths (82.8%) of products exported from Ghana were bought by importers in: mainland China (16.7% of Ghana’s global total), Switzerland (14.7%), India (14.2%), South Africa (11.8%), Netherlands (5.8%), United Arab Emirates (5.4%), United States of America (4.2%), United Kingdom (2.5%), France (2.2%), Italy (1.84%), Japan (1.81%) and Burkina Faso (1.7%).
From a continental perspective, 43.4% of Ghana’s exports by value were delivered to Asian countries while 32.9% were sold to importers in Europe. Ghana shipped another 17.7% worth of goods to fellow African trade partners.
Smaller percentages went to North America (5.8%), Latin America (0.2%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, and Oceania (0.1%) New Zealand and Australia only.
Given Ghana’s population of 32.1 million people, its total $16.3 billion in 2022 exports translates to roughly $500 for every resident in the West African country. That dollar metric represents an increase from the average $410 per capita for 2021.
Ghana’s Top 10 Exports
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Ghanaian global shipments during 2022. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Ghana.
- Mineral fuels including oil: US$6 billion (37.1% of total exports)
- Gems, precious metals: $4.9 billion (30.1%)
- Cocoa: $2.2 billion (13.7%)
- Ores, slag, ash: $566.2 million (3.5%)
- Fruits, nuts: $504.5 million (3.1%)
- Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: $212.2 million (1.3%)
- Wood: $204.5 million (1.3%)
- Aluminum: $204.2 million (1.3%)
- Rubber, rubber articles: $192 million (1.2%)
- Meat/seafood preparations: $161.3 million (1%)
Ghana’s top 10 exports accounted for 93.4% of the overall value of its global shipments.
Aluminum was the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 61.7% from 2021 to 2022.
In second place for improving export sales was mineral fuels including oil via a 42% advance, led by crude and processed petroleum oils.
Ghana’s shipments under the ores, slag and ash product category posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 32.9%.
The leading decliner among Ghana’s top 10 export categories was fruits and nuts, dragged down by a -30.8% drop compared to 2021.
At the more detailed four-digit Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) code level, Ghana’s most valuable export product is crude oil (34.4% of overall Ghanian exports). In second place was gold (29.8%) trailed by cocoa beans (8.2%), manganese ores or concentrates (3.2%), cocoa paste (2.8%), cashew nuts and coconuts (2%), cocoa butter, fats and oils (1.7%), natural rubber and similar gums (1.2%), unwrought aluminum (1.1%) the prepared fish including caviar (1%).
Products Generating Ghana’s Largest Trade Surpluses
The following types of Ghanaian product shipments represent positive net exports or a trade balance surplus. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports.
In a nutshell, net exports represent the amount by which foreign spending on a home country’s goods or services exceeds or lags the home country’s spending on foreign goods or services.
- Gems, precious metals: US$4.9 billion (Down by -7.5% since 2021)
- Mineral fuels including oil: $4 billion (Up by 37.5%)
- Cocoa: $2.2 billion (Down by -21.3%)
- Ores, slag, ash: $564.3 million (Up by 34.3%)
- Fruits, nuts: $474 million (Down by -32.1%)
- Wood: $152 million (Up by 9.9%)
- Copper: $73.1 million (Up by 77.9%)
- Lead: $43.9 million (Up by 41%)
- Vegetables: $38.8 million (Up by 467.4%)
- Aluminum: $36.5 million (Reversing a -$72 million deficit)
Ghana has highly positive net exports in the international trade of gold and, to much lesser degrees, precious-metal scrap and diamonds. In turn, these cashflows indicate Ghana’s strong competitive advantages under the gems and precious metals product category.
Products Causing Ghana’s Worst Trade Deficits
Overall Ghana incurred an estimated -US$2.7 billion product trade deficit for 2022. That deficit represents a -55.1% reduction from -$6 billion in red ink from one year earlier in 2021.
Below are exports from Ghana that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Ghana’s goods trail Ghanaian importer spending on foreign products.
- Machinery including computers: -US$2 billion (Down by -14.6% since 2021)
- Vehicles: -$1.2 billion (Down by -36.3%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: -$999.9 million (Down by -20.8%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: -$970.1 million (Down by -17.7%)
- Iron, steel: -$881.8 million (Down by -32.2%)
- Articles of iron or steel: -$842 million (Up by 21.6%)
- Ships, boats: -$410.3 million (Up by 207.6%)
- Other chemical goods: -$402.6 million (Up by 5.8%)
- Meat: -$387 million (Down by -28.2%)
- Furniture, bedding, lighting, signs, prefabricated buildings: -$365.4 million (Down by -12.9%)
Ghana has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits under the machinery including computers product category.
Ghanaian Export Companies
Not one Ghanaian corporation ranks among Forbes Global 2000.
Wikipedia lists some exports-related companies from Ghana. Selected examples are shown below.
- Accra Brewery Company (beer)
- African Champion Industries (paper)
- Aluworks (aluminum)
- Ayrton Drugs (pharmaceuticals)
- CFAO Ghana (automobiles)
- Cocoa Processing Company (cocao beans)
- Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (oil, gas)
- Kuapa Kokoo (cocao)
- Pioneer Kitchenware (household goods)
- Printex (textiles)
In macroeconomic terms, Ghana’s total exported goods represent 7.5% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2022 ($217.5 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 7.5% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2022 compares to 6.6% for 2021. Those percentages suggest a relatively increasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Ghana’s total economic performance, albeit based on relatively short timeframe.
Another key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. Ghana’s unemployment rate averaged 3.9% in 2022, same as an average 3.9% for 2021 per Trading Economics.
Ghana’s capital city is Accra.
See also South Sudan’s Top 10 Exports, Angola’s Top 10 Exports, Switzerland’s Top Trading Partners, Top South African Trading Partners and Top African Export Countries
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Africa: Ghana. Accessed on August 10, 2023
FlagPictures.org, Flag of Ghana. Accessed on August 10, 2023
Forbes 2022 Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on August 10, 2023
International Monetary Fund, Exchange Rates selected indicators (Domestic Currency per U.S. dollar, period average). Accessed on August 10, 2023
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on August 10, 2023
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on August 10, 2023
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on August 10, 2023
Wikipedia, Ghana. Accessed on August 10, 2023
Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on August 10, 2023
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Ghana. Accessed on August 10, 2023
Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on August 10, 2023
World’s Capital Cities, Capital Facts for Accra, Ghana. Accessed on August 10, 2023