Retailers & Manufacturers Demand The United States Dollar For Payment Of Goods

Local Retailers and manufacturers are allegedly rejecting the RTGS dollar demanding the United States dollar for the payment of goods.

Businesses are citing the local currency’s rapid and continuous loss of value against other currencies particularly the United States dollar.

Commenting on the development, Confederation of Retailers of Zimbabwe (CZR) president Denford Mutashu, said the growing gap between the exchange rates for RTGS dollars and cash has been putting unrelenting pressures on commodity prices. He said:

The rejection of RTGS dollars is an issue that we have picked in the market. A number of suppliers and manufacturers have opted to deal only in cash and hard currency and the concerns are around the instability of the local currency.

The manner in which the local currency is shedding value reminds of the 2008 era when the country’s inflation reached a record-high 231 million percent resulting in the country ditching the original Zimbabwe dollar.