ZIMBABWE’S imports increased by 13% to $444 million in August 2016, despite government having introduced Statutory Instrument 64 of 2016 to stem the tide, latest data from the national statistics agency has shown.
Source: Imports accelerate despite restrictions – NewsDay Zimbabwe September 29, 2016
BY MTHANDAZO NYONI
Data from the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStat) indicates that Zimbabwe imported goods worth $444m in August against exports of $203m.
The country’s major exports were minerals and a wide range of agriculture-related products such as tobacco, tea and horticulture products.
The statistics agency noted that gold exports contributed $56m, down 36% from the previous month, followed by tobacco, which increased by 83% to $35m.
Nickel ore and concentrates, on the other hand, contributed $29m. Sugarcane exports contributed $13 million in the period under review
Cumulatively, from January to August, the country imported goods worth $3,3 billion, while exports amounted to $1,5bn, resulting in a trade deficit of $1,8bn.
The high trade deficit poses headaches for fiscal and monetary authorities, who have been battling to boost exports, the biggest source of the country’s liquidity.
As at the end of June, exports contributed over 60% of the liquidity flows into the country.
ZimStat data showed that diesel contributed $69m into the country’s imports bill, followed by unleaded petrol at $36m, maize $34m and electricicty $18m.
Most of the imports were consumptive products such as maize, rice, bottled water, fuel, sugar, soap, cellphone handsets, electronics, vehicle spares, new vehicles, generators and second-hand vehicles.
In his mid-term fiscal policy review, Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa said the decline in export performance was a reflection of the overall slowdown in real economic activity in 2016, weighed down by drought-induced contraction in agriculture, declining global mineral prices, weakening regional and other trading partner currencies.
He said the low export performance was a result of suppressed capacity utilisation in the manufacturing sector and lack of affordable external lines of credit.
Recently, trade promotion body, ZimTrade, noted, in a report, that Zimbabwe’s huge trade deficit continues to widen due to low exports and a growing import bill, made up mostly of consumer goods.
In a bid to curtail imports, the government, in July, introduced controls through SI 64 of 2016.
The SI removed various goods from the open general import licence, and that, coupled with other measures on raw materials and the weak South African rand, weighed down overall imports for the period.
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