Zimbabwe: The shops are EMPTY

[Hail Columbia]

http://www.africancrisis.co.za/Article.php?ID=14656&

[Total economic collapse in Zim... I love it. This is what Mozambique experienced in 1975. Jan]

Harare - Basic commodities had all but disappeared from some shop shelves in Zimbabwe on Wednesday, a day after the authorities ordered a drastic 50 percent price slash.

A snap survey in several supermarkets in Harare showed that bread, milk, flour and cooking oil were no longer on the shelves.

"There's no supplies," a shop assistant said in a supermarket in Harare's Avondale suburb, popular with trendy young professionals, pensioners and business people.

"No bread, no milk, no flour, no cooking oil, no eggs. Its a big problem," he told a shopper in the dimly-lit supermarket.

Avondale had been plunged into darkness by one of the capital's frequent power cuts.

In a last-ditch bid to halt the dizzying price increases that have swept Zimbabwe in the last few days, Industry Minister Obert Mpofu late on Monday ordered that prices be slashed by around half.

Under government orders, bread, which had been selling for as much as Zim$55 000 (about R1 500) a loaf was to be reduced to $22 000. Milk was to be reduced from $30 000 per 500ml to 27 000. A host of other new prices were also announced.

Mpofu said the price increases were due to unruly behaviour on the part of manufacturers and retailers. Business people however say they were forced to hike prices because of the sudden collapse of the Zimbabwe dollar against the US dollar.

The Zimbabwe dollar last week fell to 400 000 to the US for large transactions on the black market, against the official exchange rate of 15 000 to the US.

By Wednesday supermarkets and suppliers appeared to be getting round the government's decree by simply withdrawing their stock.

In a second supermarket, also in Avondale, there were empty shelves where stocks of a popular brand of soap should have been. Shoppers were scrabbling for a few remaining bread rolls.

By mid-morning, shop workers were lowering grills outside the shop as the stores alternative power supply finally died.

In Sam Nujoma Street - where no bread, fresh milk, flour or eggs were to be found - a shop assistant pointed angrily at expensively imported foods which are not covered by government controls.

That's all my salary, he said, pointing to a box of South African breakfast cereal priced at more than Zim$700 000. - Sapa-DPA

URL: http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=84&art_id=nw20070627123842343C356416

Categories: US; Jan]; Zim; south africa;

[Wayne Jude]

yet no one cares!