Jasper Hloka

Speculators honeymoon days are certainly over as Government moved to tame the parallel market by banning trading in US dollars through the revoking of Statutory Instrument 142 of 2019.

Government effectively took charge of the economy yesterday, affording the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe the capacity to manage the country’s fiscus. Previously the parallel market determined the exchange rates and other economic fundamentals.

The move continues to enjoy buy-in of various economic stakeholders inclusive of Equity Axis which posted on its Twitter handle that sanity will prevail in the country’s economy. “Sanity and uniformity in pricing will prevail as all prices will only be in ZW$; the RBZ can now use the monetary policy to manage the economy while increase in money supply is to decorate the new business environment” posted Equity Axis.

Presidential Advisory Committee (PAC) member, Shingie Munyeza weighed in positing that speculators days are over before submitting that “the parallel market will tumble, prices will stabilise while the rest of the economy will buy locally and increase on exports.”

Illegal foreign currency dealers had become self-proclaimed economic kingpins holding Zimbabweans to ransom as they unabatedly hiked exchange rates between the Bond notes and the USD, thereby making lives of ordinary Zimbabweans a misery as they could not afford the ‘Benjamin’s’.