“The economy is not growing at the same rate as in the first quarter, which recorded 4.8 per cent,” Dr. Philomena Nyarko, Government Statistician, told a news conference in Accra.

The Statistical Service said the slowdown was due mainly to a temporary halt in oil output.

According to Dr. Nyarko, the halt was caused by a technical fault at the main production vessel popularly known as the Kwame Nkrumah FPSO.

Production stopped between March and May at the offshore Jubilee field operated by Tullow Oil, producing around 100,000 barrels per day.

The Government Statistician said: “Between the second quarter of 2015 and (the same period in) 2016 the year-on-year (oil sector) growth rate was negative 49 per cent and that was due to the shutdown of the FPSO. That is the major issue that is accounting for the lower GDP growth rate.”

The country hopes to increase its oil and gas production to boost the economy, after opening a second oilfield about a month ago.

Ghana recorded a sustained GDP growth of above eight per cent until 2013, driven by exports of gold, cocoa and oil, but then slumped because of lower global commodity prices and a fiscal crisis that forced it to secure an aid deal with the International Monetary Fund that began last year.

However, the government is optimistic the economy will return to a growth rate above eight per cent next year.

Meanwhile, the Statistical Service has announced that producer price inflation (PPI) rose to 11.1 per cent year-on-year in August from a revised 10.4 per cent in July.

The PPI measures the average change over time in the prices received by domestic producers for the production of their goods and services.

PPI is a major component of consumer inflation, which has for years remained above government targets.

By Times Reporter