The first half of 2025 has brought a mixed bag of news for Ghana’s stock market. While prices of many financial stocks have soared, the overall trading activity on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) has slowed sharply, raising questions about broader investor participation.
According to the June market summary released by the GSE, the total number of shares traded between January and June dropped by a staggering 74% compared to the same period last year. In total, 150.9 million shares changed hands in the first six months of 2025, a sharp fall from over 585 million shares recorded during the same period in 2024.
This slowdown in activity was not just in the number of shares. The value of those trades also dipped, though less dramatically, falling by just over 5% to GHS 932.9 million. This contrast suggests that while fewer shares are being traded, many of the trades that are happening involve larger, more valuable stocks, possibly driven by bigger institutional investors.
Even the month of June followed this trend. Trading volume was down 19% and the value of shares traded was down nearly 46% compared to June last year.
And yet, it wasn’t all bad news. The market’s overall performance, measured by the GSE Composite Index, continued to rise, gaining 1.60% in June alone and posting a solid 27.82% growth for the year so far. Much of this growth came from financial institutions, especially local banks, whose shares have become increasingly attractive to investors.
Notable performers included GCB Bank, which gained 24.5%, Access Bank Ghana with 22.2%, and Société Générale at 14.4%. These gains point to growing confidence in some parts of the financial sector, even as overall trading slows.
In simple terms, while some companies, particularly banks, are doing well and attracting investor interest, fewer people overall are buying and selling shares on the market.
