Zimbabwe Stock Exchange resumes trading after a month of suspension

The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) has resumed after a month-long shutdown as the government ordered an investigation against illegal foreign dealings by some companies.

The order, according to the government, was geared towards protecting the Zimbabwean dollar, which has been in free fall in recent months.

The suspension was seen as a step back for an economy that continues to be weighed down by other factors such as runaway inflation and spiralling commodity and fuel prices, amid food shortages.

The chief executive of the ZSE, Justin Bgoni, confirmed on Twitter that the market was open following an “excruciating period” since the suspension.

“Market now open and first trade is done. It has been an excruciating time since 29 June. We would like to apologise to our valued stakeholders for the inconvenience. We would like also to thank all those who supported us during the closure of the market,” Bgoni tweeted.

Bgoni also confirmed that trading had resumed without three listed companies: cement manufacturer PPC, financial services company Old Mutual and Seedco International.

Black markets

Bgoni said that officials were working to rectify the situation affecting the three companies.

“We would like to apologise to the stakeholders affected by this. We are now working on the modalities of getting trading on those companies resuming and we will be in touch shortly.”

Old Mutual’s future in Zimbabwe has been thrown into uncertainty after the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) party requested the government to delist it from the ZSE, accusing Old Mutual of fanning the foreign currency black market.

Last month, the party’s acting spokesman, Patrick Chinamasa, said Old Mutual and Ecocash, Zimbabwe’s biggest mobile-money platform, had caused “runaway inflation through illegal parallel exchange-market rates”.

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