Zimbabwe to sell gold coins amid inflation

STORY: Zimbabwe's central bank says it will start selling gold coins this month.

That move is a bid to tame runaway inflation which has considerably weakened the local currency.

The "Mosi-oa-tunya" coin, named after Victoria Falls, will be available from July 25 in local currency, U.S. dollars and other foreign currencies, said central bank governor John Mangudya.

In a statement on Monday (July 4) he said the coins would be priced based on the prevailing international price of gold and the cost of production.

The coin, containing one troy ounce of gold, can be converted into cash and traded locally and internationally, the bank said.

Gold coins are used internationally by investors to hedge against inflation and wars.

In Zimbabwe, soaring inflation has been piling pressure on on a population already struggling with shortages.

Annual inflation hit almost 192% in June.

That's cast a shadow over President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s bid to revitalize the economy and stirred memories of the economic chaos under Robert Mugabe's nearly four decades of rule.

Zimbabwe abandoned its inflation ravaged dollar in 2009, opting to use foreign currencies - mostly the U.S. dollar.

The local currency was reintroduced in 2019 but quickly lost value.

Last week the southern African country more than doubled its interest rates to 200% and outlined plans, aimed at boosting confidence, to make the U.S. dollar legal tender for the next five years.