Authorities in Zimbabwe raised the official price of a loaf of bread in a bid to ease chronic shortages, state radio said on Friday.
A loaf of bread will now cost Z$30 000, up from Z$22 000, the country’s Industry Ministry said in a statement read aloud on state radio.
The price of some other basics has also been hiked, including salt, beef, the staple maize meal and cement.
Maize-meal, which had become scarce, can now be sold at Z$50 000 for a 10kg packet, up from Z$41 500. But the price of milk, which is also in short supply, remains unchanged.
The new bread price is unlikely to boost supplies as bakers were complaining that their selling price was not viable at Z$45 000 a loaf before the government-imposed price controls.
Authorities on June 26 ordered a slash of prices, often by more than 50%, for all goods and services which led to panic-buying.
Several retailers have said they cannot afford to restock, if they have to sell at a loss. Bread has disappeared from most outlets, with long queues forming in supermarkets baking limited quantities. There is no meat available in supermarkets.
Some butcheries shut their doors after the government ordered the price of beef down to Z$120 000 dollars per kg from Z$355 000.
More than 7 000 company executives and business, store and garage owners have been arrested for flouting price controls. Many have been fined or ordered to perform community service such as cleaning police stations.
The chief executive of one major chain of supermarkets has said his company will remain profitable despite incurring major losses in July as a result of the price blitz.
Willard Zireva of OK Zimbabwe, who was himself arrested last month after two supermarkets in his chain were allegedly found overcharging, said shortages have been exacerbated by panic-buying.
”I can assure you this [price blitz] will not cripple the operations of the company,” he was quoted by the official Herald daily as telling shareholders at a meeting this week.
”Panic-buying has characterised consumers’ purchasing patterns and this has led to shortages since people rush to grab all basic commodities as soon as they are supplied to a retail outlet, he said.
”This definitely reflects a false picture of the situation at hand.” — Sapa-dpa