Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe on Friday threatened “punitive measures” against businesses accused of “illegal forward pricing practices thereby manipulating the foreign exchange rate.”
“In terms of the law, businesses are permitted to apply a margin of up to 10 percent above the interbank exchange rate,” the central bank’s Financial Intelligence Unit said in a statement.
“There is no justification for non-compliance with the legal margins in light of the recent implementation of a market-determined interbank exchange rate system.”
The Zimbabwe dollar crashed this week when it lost value by nearly 50 percent, sending prices of goods through the ceiling.
The Consumer Council of Zimbabwe said this week that a family of six now requires Z$1 million a month to survive, up from Z$611,275 in April – but salaries remain stagnant.
Government workers have threatened strikes if their salaries are not urgently reviewed, presenting a threat of a winter of discontent for President Emmerson Mnangagwa who is seeking re-election in general elections on August 23.
The central bank is blaming businesses for fuelling the currency instability and is threatening drastic actions including freezing accounts and prosecuting company directors.
“The forward pricing and non-compliance with legal limits are being done at the detriment of the consumers who bear the brunt of the resultant unjustified pricing of goods and services,” the bank said.
“With immediate effect, the FIU will be escalating and widening remedial and punitive measures against delinquent businesses by not only imposing administrative fines but also directing that the culprits’ bank accounts be frozen indefinitely and referring the culprits to relevant authorities for the suspension and revocation of trading or operating licenses and prosecution. Liability will also be extended to directors and owners of the concerned businesses.”
In other news – Britney Spears deactivates her Instagram account
Ahead of her landmark 1st wedding anniversary with hubby Sam Asghari, Britney Spears unceremoniously shut down her Instagram account again. Per Page Six, the pop legend deactivated her account on Thursday, June 8. Fans will remember that she married Sam in a lavish, star-studded ceremony at her Thousand Oaks mansion on June 9, 2022, so the move came just one day before her very first anniversary.
While Brit seems to have removed herself from the digital landscape for the moment, Sam went right ahead and paid tribute to his famous wife with a sweet anniversary post you can see here via Instagram stories. In the first pic, Sam and Brit lightly touched left hands against a dimly lit background to show off their wedding rings. Sam wore a chic black watch and his slender ring, and the “Toxic” singer wore a massive diamond solitaire and had an elaborate manicure in the pic. “Happy 1st anniversary to me and my better half,” he wrote over the pic. Read More
