Consumer spending and industrial activity in Ghana displayed divergent trends in 2025, according to the Bank of Ghana’s January 2026 Monetary Policy Report, offering a nuanced picture of economic recovery in one of West Africa’s largest economies. Domestic VAT collections rose sharply by 38.2 percent year-on-year to GH¢2.20 billion in November 2025, while cumulative receipts for the first eleven months increased by 24.6 percent to GH¢19.29 billion. These figures suggest strengthening formal sector activity and improved tax compliance, positive indicators for fiscal consolidation efforts.
Retail sales, however, painted a more complex picture, falling 10.5 percent year-on-year to GH¢284.43 million in November before rebounding 12.7 percent month-on-month. For the first eleven months of 2025, retail sales remained up 16.3 percent overall. In manufacturing, direct tax collections climbed 14.8 percent year-on-year in July to GH¢5.26 billion, with cumulative collections for the first seven months rising 26.2 percent to GH¢47.59 billion. This manufacturing resilience suggests that structural challenges in retail may reflect changing consumer preferences or channel shifts rather than broad-based demand destruction.
