Zim inflation data 'a mystery'

Zimbabwe's Central Statistical Office (CSO) had been due to release the April inflation figure on Wednesday, with analysts saying it would likely show a country near collapse due to an economic meltdown critics blame on President Robert Mugabe's government.

Abruptly cancelled

That release was abruptly cancelled, however, and on Thursday CSO officials said they could not say what had caused the delay and when the figures would be issued.

"Let me just say we will let you know when we are ready," a senior official said, declining to give details.

Mugabe's government has admitted inflation, already the highest in the world at 913.6% as of March, is one of the biggest hurdles in its efforts to reverse an economic slide which is raising fears of popular protest.

Economists said authorities might be afraid of causing shockwaves by putting out a new figure showing the situation getting even worse.

"I think it (the postponement) shows the authorities are panicking," said Harare-based economist James Jowa.

"It could be that the rate has gone up drastically and they are trying to see how best to handle the situation because if it is too high - as indications show on the ground - then it could cause a shock in terms of the inflation outlook," he said.

Zimbabwe's dominant state media made no mention of the delayed data.

Prices up

But in an indication that Zimbabweans were already bracing for a steep jump in the consumer price index, shop assistants at some supermarkets in the capital Harare were busy adjusting upwards prices of some commodities on Thursday - an exercise that has become a familiar ritual this year.

The CSO has in the past rejected suggestions from both the local and international financial sector that it has come under pressure to suppress inflation figures for political expediency.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) working paper released earlier this year accused Zimbabwe of releasing unreliable economic data and said price controls had resulted in artificially low inflation figures.

The fund has led international donors in suspending aid to Zimbabwe over policy differences with Mugabe's government, worsening an economic crisis manifesting itself in erratic supplies of food, fuel and foreign currency while labour unions estimate unemployment has soared to 85%.

Mugabe, who has ruled the former British colony since independence in 1980, denies responsibility for the ailing economy, and in turn charges sabotage by opponents of his controversial drive to forcibly redistribute white-owned commercial farms among blacks.