Zimbabwe’s leaders must be jailed and the keys thrown away – US economist says

Zimbabwe’s leaders bust be jailed and the keys should be thrown away because they have plunged the country into the inglorious world of hyperinflation, “a world of economic chaos, wrenching poverty, and death”, a United States economist says.

Steve Hanke, in his study entitled: Zimbabwe inflates again: the 58^th episode of hyperinflation in history, says Zimbabwe which hit record hyperinflation in 2008, entered into another episode of hyperinflation on 13 October this year.

He says hyperinflation occurs when the monthly inflation rate reaches 50 percent per month and remains above that rate for at least 30 consecutive days.

 Zimbabwe breached this rate on 14 September, Hanke says.

Zimbabwe’s National Statistics Agency said annual inflation for September stood at 0.78 percent after gaining 0.64 percent on the August 2017 rate of 0.14 percent.

It said month-on-month, the inflation rate rose by 0.51 percentage points to 0.38 percent.

According to Hanke, there have been 58 episodes of hyperinflation in the world and Zimbabwe accounts for two of them.

Out of the 58, only six are from the African continent but they are from only three countries.

Angola had its hyperinflation in 1994.

The Democratic Republic of Congo had three episodes in 1998, and in 1991 and 1993 when it was still known as Zaire.

Zimbabwe completes the cycle with two episodes in2008 and this year.

“Zimbabwe, welcome back to the record books! You have once again entered the inglorious world of hyperinflation. It is a world of economic chaos, wrenching poverty, and death. Its purveyors should be incarcerated, and the keys should be thrown away,” Hanke says in the conclusion of his study.  

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