Post COVID-19 pandemic inflationary pressures coupled with national economic uncertainties have considerably impacted on Ghanaian businesses including the traditional gold jewellery industry. This paper provides empirical evidence of the impact of COVID-19 on the current state of the traditional gold jewellery industry in Ghana, with a focus on the rising gold price trends. This study is a work site based cross-sectional one, conducted among 150 gold jewellery industries in the Kumasi Metropolis of Ghana. Data obtained for this study were acquired through the use of questionnaire and personal interviews. Data collected included issues on socio-demographic profile, acquisition of gold, product demand and marketing trends, strategies to confront crisis, government support, tax relieve and policy. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 22. Descriptive statistical tools such as frequency and percentage were used to analyze the facts sought from questionnaire. The study recorded an overall response rate of 96.5%. The general outcome of the study shows that the majority of the traditional gold jewellery industries are battling to survive in the post covid era, with 86% experiencing lower demand for their products. Almost all the craftsmen (95%) interviewed complained about inadequate easy access to raw gold material and its high cost.

Covid-19 pandemic, gold price, inflationary pressure, jewellery, million stimulus packages