Audio By Carbonatix
Government is reviewing its 2015 budget estimates given a fall in the global crude oil price, which could have a negative impact on the current account balance and foreign exchange reserves, Finance Minister Seth Terkper said on Friday.
The West African state, which produces gold, cocoa and oil, is in talks with the International Monetary Fund on an assistance package designed to stabilise its economy amid high inflation and a wide budget deficit, so it is sensitive to any changes in its fiscal outlook.
"The required adjustments (to the budget estimates) will be done through the necessary procedures to ensure that the continued fall in the crude oil price does not derail our fiscal consolidation objectives," Terkper told journalists.
The government based its 2015 budget announced in November on a crude price of $99.736 per barrel, a figure derived using a formula based on legislation. Oil is currently trading below $50 a barrel.
Ghana began producing oil in 2010 and has a stabilization fund to protect against price shocks.
The economy grew at around 8 percent in recent years due to exports but GDP growth is expected to slow in 2015 to 3.9 percent, in part because of fiscal problems and a currency that slumped 31 percent last year.
Latest Stories
-
Tunisian journalists protest over media crackdown after colleague’s arrest
10 minutes -
Equatorial Guinea police pull guns on migrants deported by Trump, witnesses say
19 minutes -
Singaporean man pleads guilty in US to massive crypto heist
28 minutes -
WHO says staff shortage, funding challenges hamper Congo Ebola response
38 minutes -
IMF is not Father Christmas; Ghana must take charge – PUWU
47 minutes -
More UK flight delays expected after hundreds cancelled by air traffic control glitch
1 hour -
Very hot drinks may damage the food pipe and increase cancer risk
1 hour -
Fix IPP pricing, not just ECG, PUWU tells IMF, World Bank
1 hour -
OpenAI says it cracked 90-year-old maths problem in 88 hours
2 hours -
Meta continues to run ads promoting child sexual abuse material in India – Report
2 hours -
‘The first game was weird’ – Sampson reflects on Black Princesses’ Ecuador defeat
2 hours -
Ghana can fix its energy sector without IMF, World Bank – PUWU
2 hours -
Charles Sampson demands more confidence in front of goal from Black Princesses
2 hours -
‘We have shaken it up’ – Sampson says Black Princesses ready to redeem themselves
2 hours -
ECG revenue is improving, so what has changed? – PUWU challenges World Bank
3 hours