RBZ Forex Auction: Zimbabwe Dollar Drops Against USD
The Zimbabwe dollar continues to register some drops against the United States Dollar (USD) as indicated by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s Foreign Exchange (Forex) Auctions.
Since the introduction of the forex auction system last year, the Zimbabwe dollar has been steady with marginal drops registered here and there.
According to the results from the Tuesday, 2 March 2021 RBZ forex auction, the weighted average this week fell marginally from US$1: ZWL$83.8868 last week to US$1: ZWL$83. 8891 this week.
US$3.1 million was allocated to the Small to Medium enterprises forex auction while US$32 million was allocated to the main forex auction.
In total, US$35.1 million was allotted this week, with the bulk of the allotment (US$14.32 million) going to raw materials followed by machinery and equipment (US$5.5).
279 bids were received on the Small to Medium enterprises forex auction, with 236 accepted and 43 disqualified.
On the main forex auction, a total of 365 bids were received, 304 were accepted while 61 were disqualified.
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) said bids that were disqualified were not eligible in terms of the Priority List.
Bids with overdue CDIs, outstanding Bills of Entry (BOEs), and those with sufficient FCA balances were also disqualified.
Some bids were allotted on a pro-rata basis to conform with the Import Priority List, the RBZ said.
| Purpose | Amount Allotted SME Auction (US$) | Amount Allotted Main Auction (US$) |
|---|---|---|
| Raw Materials | 761 530.80 | 13 559 653.70 |
| Machinery and Equipment | 540 545. 30 | 5 040 973. 36 |
| Consumables (incl Spare, Tyres, Electricals) | 676 256. 00 | 2 632 893. 20 |
| Services (Loans, Education, Dividends, Disinvestments, etc) | 422 505. 26 | 2 680 874. 08 |
| Retail and Distribution (Incl. Food, Beverages, etc) | 246 103. 63 | 2 622 980. 74 |
| Fuel, Electricity and Gas | 215 829. 26 | 3 134 583. 10 |
| Pharmaceuticals and Chemicals | 211 727. 57 | 2 026 113. 86 |
| Paper and Packaging | 31 887. 40 | 273 150. 00 |
| Total | 3 106 385. 22 | 32 001 222. 04 |
