Consumer expenditure, measured by domestic VAT receipts and retail turnover, showed a mixed trend in November 2025 compared with the same period in 2024, according to the Bank of Ghana in its January 2026 Monetary Policy Report.
Domestic VAT revenue rose by 38.2 percent year-on-year to GH¢2.20 billion, up from GH¢1.59 billion recorded in November 2024.
For the first eleven months of 2025, cumulative domestic VAT collections increased by 24.6 percent to GH¢19.29 billion, compared with GH¢15.48 billion during the corresponding period in 2024.
Retail sales, however, fell by 10.5 percent year-on-year to GH¢284.43 million in November 2025, down from GH¢317.86 million in November 2024.
On a month-on-month basis, retail turnover rebounded by 12.7 percent in November 2025, rising from GH¢252.47 million in October.
Overall, retail sales for the first eleven months of 2025 expanded by 16.3 percent.
Manufacturing Activities
Activity within the manufacturing sub-sector, assessed through direct tax collections and private sector contributions to the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) Tier-1 Pension Scheme, strengthened in July 2025.
Total direct tax revenue increased by 14.8 percent year-on-year to GH¢5.26 billion in July 2025, compared with GH¢4.58 billion in July 2024.
Cumulatively, direct taxes collected in the first seven months of 2025 climbed by 26.2 percent to GH¢47.59 billion, up from GH¢37.702 billion in the same period last year.
Regarding the composition of tax revenue, income tax (including PAYE and self-employed payments) contributed 43.0 percent, corporate tax accounted for 35.8 percent, while other tax sources made up 21.2 percent.
Private Sector SSNIT Contributions
Private sector workers’ contributions to the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) Tier-1 Pension Scheme rose by 8.6 percent year-on-year to GH¢513.34 million in July 2025, compared with GH¢472.81 million in July 2024.
For the first seven months of 2025, total contributions grew by 22.6 percent to GH¢3.48 billion, up from GH¢2.84 billion during the same period in 2024.
Construction Sector Activities
Activity in the construction sub-sector, measured by cement sales volumes, declined by 10.7 percent year-on-year in July 2025 to 212,735.33 tonnes, compared with 238,167.80 tonnes recorded a year earlier.
On a month-on-month basis, cement sales increased by 3.1 percent in July 2025 from 206,282.00 tonnes in June.
Cumulatively, cement sales for the first seven months of 2025 rose by 2.8 percent to 1,644,413.19 tonnes.
