International mineral market prices surge boost for Zimbabwe

ZIMBABWE is profiting from the upsurge in mineral prices on the international market with prospects for gold coin investors looking bright, the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries has said.

The industry lobby group said the movement of prices of precious metals has a direct bearing on revenues for Zimbabwe.

Last year, precious metals accounted for 75,8 percent of total export earnings with gold and platinum being the highest contributors.

Giving insights on the business environment, CZI said the increase in the prices of precious metals generally responds to the increase in investors’ interest in precious metals. It noted that investor interest in precious metals has increased because of continuing economic uncertainty in the world as they are regarded as a secure asset during turbulent times.

The price increases boosted Zimbabwe’s export earnings and is expected to incentivise primary and small-scale miners to increase output.

The favourable mineral prices is also contributing to the country’s socio-economic development, it noted.

“Prospects are looking good for gold coin investors and gold producers in Zimbabwe as the international price of gold increased by four percent from $1,816,02 per ounce in January 2022 to $1,897,71 in

CONFEDERATION of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI)

January 2023,” said CZI in its business insights publication.

The CZI however said despite the upward trend, gold prices peaked at US$1,947,83 in March 2022 which is higher than the January 2023 price.

“This demonstrates that gold prices are still volatile and there is still need for care in investment decisions. The same upward trend is also observable with respect to international platinum prices.

“Platinum prices increased by six percent from $994,15 in January 2022 to $1 053,25 per ounce in January 2023.

“The January 2023 price is a record 12 month high, which spells good fortunes for platinum mining firms and underlines its emerging increased interests as an investment tool.”

In line with President Mnangagwa’s vision to transform Zimbabwe into an upper middle-income economy by 2030, the extractive sector is among the top growth drivers as enshrined in the National Development Strategy1 (NDS1) (2021-2025).-chronicle