Zimbabwe central bank relents on hawkish stance

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe last month began to loosen the tight monetary policy it had in place over the last 2 years to act against inflation. The hawkish stance of the central bank began to change when the RBZ announced that it would reduce interest rates by 50% to 150%. Zimbabwe's central bank's hawkish stance has resulted in a weakening economy and rising unemployment. The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe held the global record for highest interest rates, reaching a staggering 200%. The central bank has lowered this to 150% on the grounds that the inflationary conditions that required the significant increase have subsided. As is typical with hawkish monetary policy approaches, Zimbabwe's central bank's hawkish stance has resulted in a weakening economy and rising unemployment. On 3 February 2023, the Zimbabwean monetary authorities issued the country's first Monetary Policy Statement via the central bank. Twice a year, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe releases a monetary policy statement that outlines the government's position on interest rates and money supply. This statement is always eagerly anticipated since it sets the tone for stakeholders' economic performance expectations. This is true everywhere on the planet. Zimbabwe is not a special case. Zimbabwe has