Zimbabwe will reportedly from now on measure inflation using a weighted average of goods denominated in Zimbabwean dollars and US dollars, the government reported on Friday.
Previously the official rate of inflation was measured only based on items in the local currency. US Dollar widely used in southern African countries alongside the Zimbabwean dollar and the South African rand.
The government relaunched the Zimbabwean dollar in 2019 after a decade of dollarisation, but in 2020 it allowed the use of foreign currencies as part of measures to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Last year, the government said the multi-currency system would be maintained for another five years. Composite inflation for February stood at 92.3% year-on-year compared to 101.5% in January, the statistics agency reported.
On the other side of the currency market, the US dollar weakened in American trading on Friday, on track for weekly losses, amid uncertainty about the extent of the policy tightening path for the future.
The US dollar index, which tracks the US dollar against a basket of six other currencies, traded 0.23% lower at 104.760, falling back from a two-month high of 105.36 seen at the start of the week.
The US dollar was also impressed that the Fed may stick to its moderate monetary tightening path for the market following the comments of Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic.
Bostic said he favors slow and effective action as appropriate for the Fed, arguing for a 25 basis point hike later this month, adding that the impact of higher interest rates may only begin to be felt in the spring.
