Zimbabwe’s inflation rate is now spiraling out of control, with market watchers claiming it is at 666%, and heading towards the dreaded 4 digit rate.
Apparently retailers are now reportedly changing prices on a daily basis, while others opt for the much stable US dollar.
According to renowned world economic analyst Steve Hanke says Zimbabwe’s year on year inflation is almost three times the official rate by the Zimbabwe Statistics Agency (ZimStat).
“Zimbabwe takes 1st place in this week’s Hanke’s Inflation Roundup. On May 11, I accurately measured Zimbabwe’s inflation at 666%/yr, almost 3x ZimStat’s official inflation rate of 243.8%/yr. More phony measurements from Taguma Mahonde & ZimStat,” he says.
He adds that the Zimbabwean dollar has depreciated by 93 percent since January 2022.
“Since January 2022, the Zimbabwean dollar has depreciated against the USD by 93 percent,” he says.
Zimbabwe is in 1st place in this week’s Hanke’s Currency Watchlist, and Hanke calls for the disbanding of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe and officially adopt the US dollar.
“Zimbabwe must mothball the Reserve Bank, and officially adopt the USD,” he says.
According to him, anyone asserting that Zimbabwe’s gold-backed digital currency will herald the return of a global gold standard is delusional.
As alleged by watchers, Zimbabwe’s economy collapsed due to terrible policies, incompetence and rampant corruption caused by looting of public funds and the plunder of the country’s natural resources.
They say genuine investors are staying away from the country due to the lack of Rule of Law and ever changing regulations through the abuse of Statutory Instruments.
On the black market exchange rate is now over 1500 as the local currency continues to lose buying power.
Meanwhile, President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa’s spokesperson George Charamba recently confessed that the country is now fully dollarised.
Zwnews
