Zimbabwe looks to alleviate foreign currency shortages

Zimbabwe's mines minister on Monday said the central bank governor would soon introduce a monetary policy tool to alleviate foreign currency shortages that have affected mining companies.

"One of the current challenges which the industry is facing relates to foreign currency retention... The governor will over the next week or two come up with monetary policy intervention which would address that issue," minister Winston Chitando said in a presentation on the sidelines of an African mining conference.

Zimbabwe's gold miner RioZim last year closed its three mines due to a shortage of dollars, the company said in a letter to the central bank seen by Reuters.