Zimbabwe’s currency rout slows as central bank touts $500m plan
The loan is said to be a platinum-backed four-year facility obtained from the African Export-Import Bank
Harare — Zimbabwe may not yet have pushed through with its plan to alleviate a crippling dollar shortage, but its currency has already strengthened on the black market. The real-time gross settlement (RTGS) dollar appreciated about 27% from a record low on Monday, according to MarketWatch, a website run by financial analysts, after the central bank said it would inject $500m into the foreign-exchange market. The central bank is intervening to stem a rout in recent weeks and as the price of goods soars at the fastest pace in more than a decade. Local investors have been piling into the stock market to hedge against inflation, which climbed above 75% in April. Governor John Mangudya said on Saturday the injection would “go a long way to stabilise the exchange rates and prices of goods and services,” and finance minister Mthuli Ncube said the money is from “international banks”, without naming them. The loan is a four-year facility obtained from the African Export-Import Bank and uses...
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