RBZ allots US$18,7 million to businesses

Michael Makuza, Business Reporter
THE Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) has allotted US$18,7 million to businesses at the Foreign Currency Auction System this week while the local currency continues to lose grip against the United States dollar.

The official exchange rate at the forex auction system moved to US$1: ZWL$915 on Tuesday from US$1: ZWL$912 last week.

In its latest update, the RBZ said a total of US$16,7 million was allotted for the main auction and US$1,9 million for the Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs), making a total of US$18,7 million.

The main auction approved bids worth US$16,8 million while the SMEs platform got US$1,9 million.

As of last week, total cumulative foreign exchange auction allotments since the inception of the auction system in June 2020 stand at US$3,84 billion.

As has been the norm since the establishment of the platform, the bulk of the foreign currency has been allotted towards the procurement of raw materials, machinery, and equipment.

A total of US$7,3 million went towards the procurement of raw materials while US$3,1 million was channelled towards the procurement of machinery and equipment in the main auction.

In the SME category, US$572 024 went towards raw materials while US$578 298 was for machinery and equipment procurement.

The Central Bank introduced the auction platform to improve productive sector accessibility to the much-needed forex.