ACCRA: Ghana’s central bank on Monday raised its main interest rate by 200 basis points to 19%, Governor Ernest Addison said in a statement.

The Bank of Ghana shocked markets in March by hiking its policy rate by 250 basis points to 17.00% - then the largest increase in the West African country’s history - to stem runaway inflation in one of the region’s more prosperous nations.

Ghana’s government also announced sweeping spending cuts that month to try to reduce the budget deficit and save a sliding local currency, with the country on the brink of a full-blown debt crisis.

The gold, oil and cocoa producer saw consumer inflation rise to an 18-year record of 23.6% in April.

The country’s overall balance of payment deficit stood at $934.6 million, Addison said.