Ghana’s Treasury bill auction ended in undersubscription last week, with investors bidding a total of GH¢3.49 billion against the government’s target of GH¢5.58 billion, leaving a shortfall of 37.53 per cent.
According to data from the Ghana Fixed Income Market (GFIM), demand for short-term government securities rose slightly compared to the previous week, climbing from GH¢3.45 billion to GH¢3.49 billion.
Despite this, investor appetite still fell well below the government’s fundraising target.
At the auction, nearly all bids were accepted, with 99.62% of 91-day bills, 98.54% of 182-day bills, and 100% of 364-day bills cleared.
Yields on the 91-day and 182-day bills inched up by 4 and 3 basis points, respectively, to settle at 10.50% and 12.39%, while the 364-day bill declined slightly by 2 basis points to 12.9%.
Meanwhile, secondary market activity on the GFIM expanded, with trading volumes rising 2.7% to GH¢5.7 billion.
Bank of Ghana (BoG) bills dominated trading, accounting for 52.53% of activity.
Corporate bonds contributed 16.11%, new Government of Ghana notes and bonds 15.63%, Sell Buy Back transactions 15.02%, Treasury bills just 0.71%, while old Government of Ghana notes and bonds made up 0.01%.
On the currency front, the cedi weakened across major trading currencies.
It depreciated by 1.05% against the U.S. dollar, closing at GH¢12.40 on the interbank market, although it still shows a year-to-date gain of 18.55%.
Against the British pound, the cedi fell 0.49% to GH¢16.63, while losing 0.54% against the euro to close at GH¢14.50. Open market indicative rates pegged the cedi at GH¢12.50 per dollar, GH¢16.75 per pound, and GH¢14.68 per euro.
On the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE), the market continued its bullish run.
The Composite Index appreciated by 4.38% to close the week at 8,120.00 points, representing a year-to-date return of 66.10%.
The rally was supported by gains in heavyweights such as MTN Ghana, Ecobank Ghana, CalBank, FanMilk, Clydestone, GCB Bank, and NewGold.
Ecobank Ghana rose 17.65% to GH¢11.00, CalBank climbed 10.53% to GH¢0.63, and FanMilk gained 10.21% to GH¢5.29. MTN Ghana advanced 6.36% to GH¢4.35, Clydestone surged 6.25% to GH¢0.17, GCB Bank rose 3.93% to GH¢14.03, and NewGold added 3.27% to GH¢474.00.
On the downside, Unilever Ghana slipped 0.05% to GH¢19.99, while Guinness Ghana Breweries recorded the steepest decline, dropping 9.59% to GH¢5.47.
Trading volumes on the GSE declined by 4.56% to 8.39 million shares from the previous week’s 8.80 million, with total value traded estimated at GH¢39.6 million.
Market analysts expect financial stocks and the ICT sector to remain pivotal in driving the index’s performance in the coming week.
