The government has once again stepped in to cushion consumers against rising petroleum prices by extending the GH¢2-per-litre reduction in the regulatory margin on diesel for the next pricing window.

The measure, which was initially introduced for two pricing windows, was expected to expire at the end of August.

Earlier, the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) had called on the government to cushion motorists, transport operators and businesses from the impact of rising fuel prices for at least the next two weeks.

According to Executive Secretary of COPEC, Duncan Amoah, “Government originally had indicated it was going to do that for just two window periods, which is a month. We would want to plead that at least the next two weeks be considered again. Already diesel is around GH¢17 a litre for most of the OMCs.

“Allowing the GH¢2 to come back [off] would mean we will be doing GH¢19, approaching GH¢20 a litre. That situation I think the government itself is uncomfortable for”.

Currently, diesel prices are already selling at around GH¢17 per litre at most Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs).

Meanwhile, COPEC has hinted at an increase in fuel prices from the first pricing window in September, with petrol likely to see an increase after recording nearly a 10% rise in international market prices over the past two-week trading window.

The trend, according to COPEC’s secretary, suggests that fuel prices are likely to increase in the next pricing window.

“Fuel prices are likely to inch up from the first window September. Petrol most likely, since it’s done almost 10% to close trading over the past two-week window, and decisions [are] that our prices would go up,” he added.

In a separate development, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has advised the Central Bank to proceed with caution following two policy rate cuts already this year.

The IMF cited the impacts of the protracted Middle East crisis on energy and fertiliser prices, the fiscal relaxation under the Policy Coordination Instrument, and persistent risks from high exchange rate pass-through.

An official of the Fund, during its latest Article IV Consultation and Policy Coordination Instrument (PCI) review in Accra, gave the BoG the caution following discussions and deliberations with Ghanaian authorities.

“The Bank of Ghana should exercise caution before reducing its policy rate further, given risks from energy and fertiliser prices linked to the Middle East conflict, fiscal relaxation under the PCI, and continued exchange rate pass-through. Another reduction in the policy rate could move the BoG’s monetary policy position from neutral to accommodative, a shift that is not justified under current economic conditions,” one of the Fund’s officials warned.

The IMF also warned that further rate cuts could make monetary policy too loose and put renewed pressure on inflation, risking a shift in the monetary policy stance from neutral to accommodative.

In March 2026, the BoG’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decreased its policy rate by 400 basis points to 14%, bringing cumulative cuts to 1,400 basis points since July 2025.

The MPC kept the policy rate unchanged in May 2026. With inflation projected to return to the BoG’s 8±2% target by the end of 2026 and the estimated real neutral rate around 5.0%, the ex-ante real policy rate is broadly consistent with a neutral policy stance.

Meanwhile, the IMF says the BoG is reforming its monetary policy operations.

In December 2025, the BoG replaced its 56-day bills with 14-day bills to strengthen liquidity management.

Following this operational change, the BoG bill supply became limited, reducing liquidity absorption and boosting the use of the standing deposit facility. This pushed BoG bill and interbank rates towards the bottom of the interest rate corridor, effectively loosening monetary conditions by approximately 350 basis points relative to the policy rate.

In line with the IMF Staff advice, in June 2026, the BoG unified the cash reserve ratio (CRR) at 20%, eliminating the previous tiered structure (with 15% and 25% rates linked to loan-to-deposit ratio thresholds).

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected a 17% increase in Ghana’s debt-to-GDP ratio, rising from 45.3% recorded in 2025 to 53.0% by the end of 2026.

The projection was included in the financial watchdog’s Fiscal Monitor Report, released on the sidelines of the 2026 Spring Meetings of the IMF and World Bank in Washington, DC.

While the report did not indicate what drivers are likely to cause the projected increase, it noted that “Government debt and interest rate projections are based on a post-debt restructuring scenario.”

A report by the Bank of Ghana (BoG) showed that Ghana’s debt-to-GDP ratio two years ago stood at 61.8% with total debt pegged at GH¢726.7 billion. By 2025, the ratio had eased to 45.3%, with total debt declining to GH¢641 billion.