Renowned world economic analyst Professor Steve Hanke says Zimbabwe is leading the inflation charts into the new season.
“On January 4, I accurately measured Zimbabwe’s inflation at a stunning 1024%/yr.
“Zimbabwe takes the prize:
“The prize of the world’s highest inflation rate.”
Hanke has for years provided reliable inflation figures world over, with governments allegedly producing distorted information to paint a glossy picture.
The Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStat) which uses the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to measure inflation reports otherwise.
The index gets its information from a survey of different sectors. It records the prices of several consumer items each month. The CPI will tell you the general rate of inflation.
Inflation reduces the purchasing power of each unit of currency, which leads to increases in the prices of goods and services over time.
It’s an economics term that means you have to spend more to fill your petrol tank, buy a litre of milk/kg of mealie meal, or get a haircut. In other words, it increases your cost of living.
There are two main causes of inflation, the most common is demand-pull inflation.
That’s when demand outpaces supply for goods or services. Buyers want the product so much that they’re willing to pay higher prices.
Cost-push inflation is the second, less common, cause. That’s when supply is restricted but demand is not. That happened after Hurricane Katrina damaged gas supply lines.
Demand for gasoline didn’t change, but supply constraints raised prices to $5 a gallon.
Zwnews
