Dr. Ernest Addison – BoG Governor
According to the results from the Central Bank, Treasury Bills (T-bills) were oversubscribed in the latest auction held on July 7, 2023 by GH¢404.94 million.
The target for the auction was GH¢1.75 billion however, the total number of bids that were accepted was GH¢1.97 billion. The subscriptions for the auction held on July 7 were from the 91-day, 182-day, and 364-day bills.
For the 91-day bills, interest rates have increased from 23.95% to 24.39%, the 182-day bill increased from 25.79% to 26.02% whiles the 364-day bill’s interest rates currently stand at 29.64%.
The majority of the subscriptions came from the 91-day bill but all bids tendered were not accepted.
Out of the GH¢1.63 billion bids tendered, GH¢1.54 billion bids were accepted. The 182-day bids accepted all bids tendered amounting to GH¢297.63 million and the 364-day bill accepted all bids worth GH¢137.89.
However, the government expects to raise GH¢1.778 billion from the 91-day bill, 182-day bill, and 364-day bill in its next auction.
Interest rates have steadily been rising in the past few weeks, even though the country has received the first tranche of the $3 billion IMF loan since May.
The increasing interest rates are a source of worry as the government will have to pay more in maturities.
The government had failed to meet the GH¢2.39 billion target set last week of GH¢500 million.
Last week’s target according to the Bank of Ghana included a sell buy-back of GH¢1.01 billion which matures and will be rolled over July 6, 2023.
A Business Desk Report