Ghana Sells $2 Billion Bonds as Demand Exceeds Supply Fourfold

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Date of publication: 31 August 2020
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Ghana Sells $2 Billion Bonds as Demand Exceeds Supply Fourfold
Synopsis
West African country sells 10- and 30-year durations
African nations’ 2018 euro, dollar debt sales top $20 billion
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West African country sells 10- and 30-year durations
African nations’ 2018 euro, dollar debt sales top $20 billion

Demand for Ghana’s $2 billion of Eurobonds exceeded supply four times as the West African country convinced investors about its economic turnaround story, the Ministry of Finance said.

Ghana got more than $8 billion of bids after marketing the debt in the U.S. and London, the ministry said in emailed statement Friday. President Nana Akufo-Addo, who took office last year, has sought to rein in the fiscal deficit to help lower 14-year-high interest rates that are hampering businesses. The economy grew at the fastest pace in five years in 2017.

The nation placed $1 billion of 10-year bonds at 7.627 percent, the lowest rate for a sub-Saharan African country whose credit is at B, the fifth-highest junk assessment, at S&P Ratings and Fitch Ratings, the ministry said. The 30-year debt was priced at 8.627 percent, it said.

Ghana’s economy grew 8.4 percent last year. Its budget deficit decreased to 6 percent of gross domestic product in 2017 from 8.7 percent of GDP the year before. It agreed to an almost $1 billion International Monetary Fund program in April 2015 to help address chronically high budget deficits and a depreciating currency.

African nations have sold more than $20 billion of euro and dollar-denominated debt so far in 2018, already beating full-year records. Ghana joined Nigeria, Kenya, Senegal, Egypt and Angola in issuing 30-year tranches.

The ministry said $750 million represents new debt while the rest will go to swap costlier existing dollar bonds and be used for other liability management.

Bloomberg.com