Consumers are likely to see a drop in prices of goods on the market if only members of the Ghana Union of Traders of Association (GUTA) will heed to the appeal of their leadership to adjust their prices in the wake of the recent appreciation of the local currency.
President of GUTA, Dr. Joseph Obeng, says given the recent sustained appreciation of the cedi, it won’t be out of place for traders to cut prices to share the gains they are making with the consumers.
GUTA, in a statement on Sunday evening, is officially appealing to traders to adjust prices to reflect the development on the forex market.
“The Ghana Union of Traders’ Associations (GUTA) wishes to appeal to the trading community to adjust prices of goods and services to share the significant gains made by the appreciation of the cedi against the major trading currencies and bring some relief to the consuming public,” a statement released by the President on Sunday evening read.
Consumers have persistently borne the brunt of ever-increasing prices of goods on the market under the guise of cedi depreciation. The traders always justify that there is a need to stay in business, hence the price adjustments.
Following the gains made in the cedi’s stability in the past weeks, Ghanaians started raising concerns about whether there will be some respite for consumers.
GUTA had earlier confessed that the welcoming development in the forex market is gradually trickling down into their business operations. An earlier statement indicated that business confidence is bouncing back, while the market is becoming more predictable, and negative speculations about the forex are waning.
The traders’ group, therefore, commended the government for the good effort, expressing their optimism that they are likely to recoup their lost capital, which they experienced during the periods of excessive volatility.
Although the leadership cannot impose price controls on members, they believe a moral suasion like this will help members consider price adjustments to favour consumers.
Will members of GUTA heed this call? The coming days will be very crucial as all eyes will be on the market, expecting a possible downward adjustment of prices. For consumers, we can only pray and wish that members of GUTA listen to the appeal and cut prices.
