The government continues to struggle with its Treasury Bill auctions, missing its targets for the fifth consecutive week. In the latest auction, GH¢4.62 billion was raised, falling short of the GH¢4.96 billion target by GH¢345 million.
This persistent undersubscription underscores ongoing concerns about the government’s ability to meet its funding needs through short-term debt securities.
Investor interest was strongest in the 91-day Treasury Bill, which attracted bids of GHS 3.60 billion, followed by the 182-day bill at GHS 733 million and the 364-day bill at GHS 284 million.
Yields saw minor fluctuations, with the 91-day bill edging up by 0.02% to 24.84%, while the 182-day bill saw a slight decrease of 0.02% to 26.74%, and the 364-day bill remained steady at 27.85%.
Looking ahead, the government plans to raise GHS 5.31 billion in its next Treasury Bill auction, focusing on 91-day, 182-day, and 364-day bills to meet short-term liquidity needs and align with investor preferences despite the current liquidity constraints that have contributed to recent undersubscriptions.
In the broader context, the government has outlined plans to raise GHS 78.44 billion from the domestic money market during the third quarter of 2024.
Of this, GHS 53.80 billion is allocated for rolling over maturing short-term securities, with the remaining GHS 24.63 billion designated for fresh issuances to address the government’s financing needs.
This comes after a strong first half of 2024, during which the government raised GHS 115.77 billion from the treasury market, marking a 70.22% increase year-on-year.
Total investor bids for the first six months of the year reached GHS 116.07 billion.