‘RETuRn oF InDIGEnISATIon AcT SpookS InvESToRS’: p3 News Worth Knowing 'Scrap forex duty payments': P5 January 28-February 03 2021 ESTABLISHED 1969 @ FingazLive www.fingaz.co.zw Facebook: The Financial Gazette Z$260 ZSE Report TRADING on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) closed lower on Wednesday with market breadth Treasury weakening amid 19 stocks retreating due to profit taking and 17 advancing. Big trades in Econet valued at $289,4 million pushed market turnover to $323,6 million from a total volume of 27,3 million shares. The major indices closed in the red with the benchmark The mining Index closed 124,08 points lower. There were no trades on marshals the VFEX. Currencies (Bloomberg) % change ◀ USD:ZAR 15,1178 0,33 EUR:USD 1,2124 0,30 ◀ ◀ GBP:USD 1,3735 0,01 ◀ USD: JPY 103,7900 0,16 Stock Markets 3,580.06 1,12 ZSE All Share ◀ 2,217.77 0,40 Top 10 ◀ JSE 63,617.11 0,48 funds for ◀ FTSE 100 6,647.11 0,10 ◀ Dow 30,937.04 0,07 ◀ Commodities Gold 1,846,63 0,23 ◀ Platinum 1,088.13 1,32 ◀ ◀ Brent Oil 56,22 0,55 Grains (Grain SA) White Maize ZAR 3,424.00 22,00 vaccines ◀ nelson Gahadza and vaccines, among other initiatives. Tendai kamhungira “We are pursuing three options. We, as a Soya ZAR 9,015.00 0 Wheat ZAR 5,230,20 14,80 Staff Writers government, have some funding set aside to ◀ purchase the vaccine. The second source is the HE government is exploring a number private sector. Zim’s January of options to fund an expanded roll-out “We are engaging private companies and Tof much-needed Covid-19 vaccines in also having a conversation with the donor com- inflation up the country, as Zimbabweans and the economy munity,” he said. ZIMBABWE'S month-on-month in- continue to reel from the global pandemic. President Emmerson Mnangagwa has al- flation measured by the blended con- This comes as Harare is party to the World ready met with some business leaders who sumer price index in January 2021 Health Organisation-led Global Access Facil- have offered to help finance vaccines. was 2,76 percent, gaining marginally ity, Covax, under which Zimbabwe is set to Meanwhile, economic commentator on the December 2020 rate of 2,75 get three million doses of vaccines, at a cost Gorden Moyo — a former minister of State percent, the statistics agency has said. According to Zimstat the year- of US$25 million — from the 270 million jabs Enterprises has warned against any further on-year inflation for the month of available to Africa. borrowings by the government, or “knee jerk January 2021 as measured by the all- Speaking to The Financial Gazette this decisions” including increasing taxes to fund items blended Consumer Price Index week, Finance minister Mthuli Ncube said the the roll-out of vaccines in the country — as has stood at 191,52 percent. Zimstat ad- African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) been mooted in some circles. opted a blended inflation reporting would fund this facility. “I will caution against both increasing taxes system which tracks price changes in In addition, the Treasury boss said, the gov- and borrowing at this time. Borrowing will fur- Solomon nyanhongo, Stanbic Bank Zimbabwe’s new chief executive both the local currency unit and the US$, the country’s two main trading ernment would also utilise its own resources, ther hurt the economy that is currently in deep says the bank plans to continuously increase the number of digital currencies. while also looking at roping in the private sec- pain ... increasing taxes will choke struggling channels for its clients to minimise travel or physical contact. nyan- hongo takes over from Joshua Tapambwa, who had been at the helm The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, tor and partnering with donors to procure more taxpayers,” he said. To page 2 of the financial institution for the past 12 years. is forecasting annual inflation to fall to a single digit by year end. Page 2 | January 28-February 03 2021 The Financial Gazette News Treasury marshals funds for vaccines From Page 1 of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor John Man- Rather, Moyo advised, the government gudya was among those who said the ris- should instead seek to urgently plug the ing coronavirus deaths in the country — leakages in the extractive sector of the including that of key managers in both the economy, which would allow it to mobil- private and public sectors — was “quite ise resources to contain the raging corona- devastating on the economy”. virus. “While it’s too early to quantify the “It is common cause that the govern- economic impact of the second wave of ment is losing approximately US$1,8 Covid-19 on the national economy at this billion per year from the gold sub-sector point, given that most of the firms were alone through outbound illicit financial still on their industrial shutdowns and have flows. only just opened, what is true though is that “If you add the figures from diamonds the pandemic has been very severe over the and other precious stones, you will have past few weeks — as the country has lost enough to vaccinate the entire population.” human capital essential to drive the econ- “This should be augmented by the two omy. percent inter-mediated money transfer tax, “It is, therefore, critical that we all con- which should be ring-fenced for this pur- tinue to observe the Covid-19 protocols to pose,” Moyo added. protect ourselves against the virus. Kipson Gundani, an economist and “Human resource is a very critical fac- head of the CEO Africa Roundtable, also tor of production. The loss of human capi- said the government needed to reprioritise tal, of precious life, is thus quite devastat- its expenditure to fund the vaccines roll- ing on the economy,” Mangudya said. out. “It takes time to train or recruit business “Take money from military votes and executives or professional experts. Apart put it to health. As a people, we are already from the adverse impact on the loss of life, highly taxed ... Any attempt to increase tax the pandemic has also had a fundamen- will dwarf consumer power and seriously tal negative psychological impact on the suppress aggregate demand,” he said. economy, as it is inducing fear in people. Chris Mugaga, the chief executive of “We, therefore, all need to work hard the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Com- to minimise its impact on society and the merce, also said the government could economy. consider using the IMTT tax to help fund “Obviously, the necessary extension of the purchase of vaccines. the lockdown will mean that some busi- “It is a dire situation we are in. Gov- nesses will not be able to operate as nor- ernment finances alone will not be able to mal, and this will thus negatively affect procure the vaccine, given that a number production in some sectors of the economy. of necessities cannot even be funded by the “Our prayers are, therefore, that the meagre available forex. positive impact of the good rainy season “This is also confirming the debate we on the economy will be able to count- have already had that the surplus Ncube er-balance the loss of production due to always boasts about is only of academic the pandemic,” Mangudya further told The relevance. We remain on a fiscal cliff edge. Financial Gazette. “The solution lies in a strong and wide In the meantime, Russia and China public-private partnership, where the gov- have approached Harare about supplying ernment has to partner corporates and vaccines, to help curb the country’s es- introduce a heavily subsidised scheme calating Covid-19 outbreak — and amid to allow for affordability of vaccines by concerns about Zimbabwe’s ability to af- citizens, of which the majority are unem- ford the shots. ployed,” Mugaga said. This comes as local infections have With Zimbabwe’s second wave doubled in the past few weeks, with four Covid-19 deaths and infections soaring ministers and several captains of industry alarmingly in recent weeks, experts have among the more than 1 000 people who expressed serious concerns about the im- have lost their lives to the lethal respirato- pact of the pandemic on the country’s key ry disease since it was first reported in the human capital and the economy. country in March 2020. Speaking in an interview with The Fi- [email protected] nancial Gazette last week, Reserve Bank Zim plans to buy virus shots for two-thirds of population IMBABWE plans to buy suf- Businesses offered to procure dou- ficient coronavirus vaccines to ble the number of vaccines they need Z inoculate about two-thirds of its for their employees and make half that population, amid a surge in infections amount available to the government and deaths. for use in high-priority individuals The shots will be jointly acquired in the public sector, according to the by the government and private compa- proposal seen by Bloomberg and con- nies, according to a proposal presented firmed by Mangwana. during a meeting between President The Southern African nation plans Emmerson Mnangagwa and business to rely on an immunisation programme leaders in the capital, Harare, on Tues- already in place to roll-out the shots, day. in addition to companies setting aside It didn’t provide details on how spaces at their facilities that will be the purchases will be funded or which used to inoculate staff and their fam- companies will contribute. ilies. The authorities have the capacity A technical team is being assem- to inoculate about 10 million people, bled to identify vaccine options from government spokesperson Nick Mang- the US, Europe, China and India to wana said by text message.