Posted on 05/31/2006 11:53:41 PM PDT by MadIvan
A NEW $100,000 banknote will be issued in Zimbabwe today. With a value of about 67p, it is worth only the price of a loaf of bread.
Its introduction comes as the economy buckles under the highest rate of inflation in the world, currently at 1,042 per cent. The note makes its debut barely four months after the Reserve Bank introduced the $50,000 note, the highest denomination at the time. In only two weeks the Zimbabwe dollar has lost half of its value.
Despite the hyperinflation, mass unemployment and crippling shortages of fuel and foreign currency, Zimbabwe is a country of millionaires. Shoppers have to carry huge wads of cash to buy the basic foodstuffs available in most shops.
“Last week I filled a single trolley with $30 million of groceries, and I had to count out 600 notes of $20,000 at the checkout counter,” John Robertson, an economist, said.
Despite the economic gloom, he said that at least the new note “means when we go shopping, we don’t have to take a suitcase of money: we can carry it in a shoulder bag”.
As the Government announced the introduction of the note, queues were forming outside banks that had begun to limit withdrawals because of the latest shortage of currency. All coins disappeared from circulation two years ago.
Gideon Gono, governor of the central bank, said that the note was being introduced “to ensure convenience to the public”. Although he predicted that inflation would be down to 50 per cent in a year’s time, he held out the prospect of even bigger denominations if the new note failed to ease the banking problems.
Zimbabwe used to boast one of Africa’s most robust economies, but eight years of recession and a radical programme of land redistribution has left millions in poverty.
In its relentless search for cash to fill its empty treasury, the Government last week imposed a punishing new tax on the stock market. Brokers immediately halted trading, losing the state tax revenue equal to £17,000 a day.
On Monday the Government declared potatoes a “strategic crop” after realising that “the country cannot continue depending on maize alone for its food security”.
All sales of potatoes, which cost ten times as much as maize meal, can now be handled only by the Government.
Regards, Ivan
Ping!
I'm going to go out on a limb and say they need to start planning 1 million dollar notes post haste!
All those zeroes use up precious ink. They need to learn exponential format, as pretty soon they will require 1e9 dollar bills.
There came a point when a pligh of toilet paper was worth more than their printed currency, giving rise to a more economical use of money.
Very sad state of affairs.
Regards, Ivan
This sounds like the hyperinflation that happened before Hitler came into power. People would take a wheelbarrow load of Marks to the market to buy a loaf of bread.
This lead to Hitler's rise to power. They better watch out that this doesn't happen in Zimbabwe. Oh, wait, they already have Hitler in power. Now what they gonna do
Botswana is the best investment deal in Africa. It also has 1/10th the population of Zimbabwe.
Comrade Commedante M'gabe is the reason for the failure of the country. The darling of the west is now the darling of China. He would have no problem being the darling of Hell if it would keep him in power. Zimbabwe looks more like Haiti every day. Perhaps we should call him 'Papa Doc' M'gabe!
I bet you are loads of fun at a cocktail party.
I don't want to sound racist but can anyone please tell me any country, state or municipality that you have black leadership where they are doing well financially.
Tanzania
You wrote, "I don't want to sound racist..." and then wrote something blatantly racist. I don't throw the racist epithet around lightly, as a means of shutting people up who state well-thought-out positions contrary to my own, but your query was loaded with an implicit conclusion; i.e., black people seem incapable of governing. Look up the word 'disingenuous'. If you're a Stormfront troll testing the waters, you've come to the wrong place. If you're a DU troll hoping to spark a 'racialist' discussion to snapshot and take back to your buddies, go away disappointed. Republicans have been at the forefront of civil rights advancement since before the Civil War. We get things done, and bleed for it when necessary. Democrats are only adept at posturing and pandering.
Seems that your little paragraph there has a problem. Let me see if I can help.
I don't want to sound racist capitalist but can anyone please tell me any country, state or municipality that you have black socialist leadership where they are doing well financially. It seems that corruption or just plain ignorant policy is the main problem.
What they need is a Federal Reserve System!
/sarc
Ah... but the Liberals still love Mugabe. Even though he is a homophobe.
Gee... I wonder what happened.
An excellent lesson for Demoncrats (or Labour Party) who want to raise taxes on the "rich." When you raise taxes, you get less because people avoid the activity that causes the tax.
I think I read an article recently which stated that the government over there didn't have enough money to purchase the ink and paper needed to print the new bills.
Too funny.
L
Oh, that'll insure an bounteous supply of spuds, won't it? I mean, after the government forces everyone on to collectivist farms to grow them.
But, hey, at least they're not under the horror of aparthied, right? (sarcasm)
Or under Lenin from 1918-1920, when the government ended up having to sell some of the gold "inherited" from the Tsar's treasure in order to buy ink from the West...so it could print up more money.
I have been to Kenya and South Africa - based on my experience there, the poverty in Africa has absolutely nothing to do with the people - there are loads of enterprising and imaginative individuals there who work very hard. The problem lies in the lack of the rule of law and corrupt government. If that burden was ever corrected, Africa will surprise many people.
It was said of Angola, while it was under Portuguese rule, that it was "so rich, so beautiful, put a dead branch into the ground and it would grow". What Africa perhaps needs is to realise that rejecting the colonial legacy entirely was not the right way to go. Mozambique has learned this, South Africa appears to understand this, if partially - once this lesson is learned, there is no limit to Africa's potential.
Regards, Ivan
A significant problem in many developing, former colonial countries in Africa and elsewhere, including Iraq, is that in order to divide and rule, the colonial powers drew boundries that mixed opposing and hostile tribes into the same country. Nigeria is a good example, with Housa, Yoruba and Ibo tribes. Some may remember the nasty little anti Ibo war they had some years back. Now there is conflict with the northern Islamics and the southern Christians.
Of course the conflict created by the British by drawing the boundries for Iraq with Kurds, Sunnis and Shiites is very obvious today. Its a shame we couldn't have an international boundry redrawing commission.
Another example:
Note the GDP per head, very respectable.
Regards, Ivan
What they need is a Federal Reserve System!
/sarc
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Right, and anyone who thinks it can never happen here should take note of the fact that thirty years ago the idea of paying $100,000. for a house sounded strange to most of us and anyone who made $10. an hour was very well off indeed.
a sad place. I send money to some African sisters to pay their family's school fees, but they end up using it to buy food.
This is what happens when do-gooders replace a working government with trash.
What happens when communism takes control.
This corrupt government seized farms from white owners.
This rampant inflation is just another way of seizing the assets of anyone who was foolish enough to remain in the corrupt country.
It's too bad that the people are suffering, but it's the fault of the corrupt communist government.
Damn well said, sir!
Well said Frohickey: plus you just stopped this thread becoming a tedious game of PC tennis.
In 2000, just before the farm invasions began, the Zim dollar was trading at a fairly stable Z$55.00 to US$1.00
Socialism at its finest. You would think that the idiots who promote wealth re-distribution in the USA and Britain would learn something from this, but, of course, they're idiots and hence incapable of learning. (I'm talking about New Yorkers and Massholes especially as well as any of the voters who voted for anyone in the black Kongressional caucus, all democrats, people who think John McCain is distinguishable from dog squeeze, and Bushbots who think that no child left behind, the senior prescription drug give away and amnesty for Mexicans is a good idea)
just when you think they cannot find any way to screw up more in Zbwe, they find one.
"In its relentless search for cash to fill its empty treasury, the Government last week imposed a punishing new tax on the stock market. Brokers immediately halted trading, losing the state tax revenue equal to £17,000 a day.
On Monday the Government declared potatoes a “strategic crop” after realising that “the country cannot continue depending on maize alone for its food security”.
"
I don't see why they don't go ahead and start printing 500k or 1M notes instead of 100k, for that matter.
Gold anyone???
The smart ones would immediately put a bullet in his head.
"you can ignor reality, but you can not ignor the results of ignoring reality."...........even for libs and socialists.
And as I recall, Zimbabwe was feeding most of Africa.
How sad.
Libs and socialists seem to ignore the results of their policies quite easily.
They still think they can make it work.
(I could make socialism work. My method would involve lots and lots of capitalism. Socialism will then be unnecessary.)
This is worse than Germany in the late 1920s, no? People back then were using the money for wallpapering and such.
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