Merchandise trade in Ghana
Ghana: Merchandise trade was 42.5% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Merchandise trade in Ghana, 1960–2025
Source: World Trade Organization (WTO). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2025, merchandise trade in Ghana stood at 42.5%.
That represents a change of up 2.5% on the previous year and down 11.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, merchandise trade in Ghana peaked at 93.2% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 25.3%, in 1991.
That places Ghana 133rd out of 204 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Merchandise trade in Ghana, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 56.5% | — |
| 1961 | 55.4% | -1.9% |
| 1962 | 47.4% | -14.5% |
| 1963 | 43.5% | -8.2% |
| 1964 | 38.2% | -12.2% |
| 1965 | 37.3% | -2.3% |
| 1966 | 29.2% | -21.8% |
| 1967 | 34.9% | +19.7% |
| 1968 | 38.4% | +10.0% |
| 1969 | 34.4% | -10.5% |
| 1970 | 39.2% | +14.2% |
| 1971 | 38.1% | -2.8% |
| 1972 | 34.7% | -9.2% |
| 1973 | 36.9% | +6.4% |
| 1974 | 53.9% | +46.0% |
| 1975 | 57.2% | +6.2% |
| 1976 | 61.3% | +7.1% |
| 1977 | 64.3% | +5.0% |
| 1978 | 57.3% | -10.9% |
| 1979 | 45.9% | -19.8% |
| 1980 | 53.7% | +16.9% |
| 1981 | 51.4% | -4.3% |
| 1982 | 39.1% | -23.9% |
| 1983 | 59.3% | +51.6% |
| 1984 | 25.7% | -56.6% |
| 1985 | 32.9% | +27.9% |
| 1986 | 33.3% | +1.1% |
| 1987 | 42.0% | +26.3% |
| 1988 | 36.8% | -12.4% |
| 1989 | 43.6% | +18.5% |
| 1990 | 35.7% | -18.2% |
| 1991 | 25.3% | -29.1% |
| 1992 | 53.3% | +110.6% |
| 1993 | 59.5% | +11.5% |
| 1994 | 64.9% | +9.1% |
| 1995 | 56.2% | -13.4% |
| 1996 | 54.5% | -3.0% |
| 1997 | 57.5% | +5.5% |
| 1998 | 58.2% | +1.3% |
| 1999 | 67.4% | +15.7% |
| 2000 | 93.2% | +38.3% |
| 2001 | 91.6% | -1.7% |
| 2002 | 74.1% | -19.1% |
| 2003 | 72.5% | -2.2% |
| 2004 | 73.5% | +1.3% |
| 2005 | 75.8% | +3.2% |
| 2006 | 50.2% | -33.8% |
| 2007 | 49.4% | -1.6% |
| 2008 | 54.2% | +9.8% |
| 2009 | 53.3% | -1.6% |
| 2010 | 58.6% | +10.0% |
| 2011 | 72.8% | +24.1% |
| 2012 | 75.9% | +4.3% |
| 2013 | 49.9% | -34.3% |
| 2014 | 50.9% | +2.0% |
| 2015 | 48.1% | -5.4% |
| 2016 | 42.9% | -10.9% |
| 2017 | 43.9% | +2.3% |
| 2018 | 41.7% | -4.8% |
| 2019 | 42.5% | +1.9% |
| 2020 | 38.4% | -9.7% |
| 2021 | 35.7% | -7.2% |
| 2022 | 43.2% | +21.0% |
| 2023 | 38.1% | -11.6% |
| 2024 | 41.5% | +8.8% |
| 2025 | 42.5% | +2.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 41.5% | 29.2% | 56.5% | 10 |
| 1970s | 48.9% | 34.7% | 64.3% | 10 |
| 1980s | 41.8% | 25.7% | 59.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 53.2% | 25.3% | 67.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 68.8% | 49.4% | 93.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 52.7% | 41.7% | 75.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 39.9% | 35.7% | 43.2% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
More private sector data for Ghana
- Food imports 13.7% (2023)
- Manufactures imports 51.5% (2023)
- Merchandise imports 17.45 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 18.1% (2023)
- Manufactures exports 6.0% (2023)
- Merchandise exports 31.11 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 887.14 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2724 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 62.31 % change on previous year (2025)
- Merchandise imports (current US$), per capita 497.71 current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is merchandise trade in Ghana?
- Merchandise trade in Ghana was 42.5% in 2025, according to World Trade Organization (WTO).
- What is the highest merchandise trade recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 93.2% in 2000.
- What is the lowest merchandise trade recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 25.3% in 1991.
- How does Ghana rank for merchandise trade?
- Ghana ranks 133rd out of 204 countries with data for 2025.
- Is merchandise trade rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is down 11.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from World Trade Organization (WTO), published as part of Merchandise trade (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
General merchandise trade includes goods whose economic ownership is changed between a resident and a non-resident and that are not included in the following specific categories: goods under merchanting, non-monetary gold, and parts of travel, construction, and government goods and services n.i.e. It is the total of merchandise exports plus merchandise imports. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.