Global ad agency sells Zim associate for US$1

[Dumisani Ndlela] Global marketing and advertising agency Young & Rubicam (Y&R) said this week it had finally sold its 25% stake in Zimbabwean associate Imago Young & Rubicam (Imago Y&R) for a mere US$1 after its involvement in a re-election campaign for President Robert Mugabe.

Image key to Zim tourism revival

[Dumisani Ndlela] The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) is hoping to produce a turn in dwindling international arrivals from its Zimbabwe International Travel Expo, which has been re-branded, the Sanganai Travel and Tourism Africa Expo.

Zimbabwe: New law fails to weaken demand for electricity generators

[Dumisani Ndlela] Generator sales remained buoyant despite a government decision to regulate ownership of electricity generators that have become popular in the country due to frequent power outages.

Travellers in a quandary as American Express cuts off Zimbabwe

[Dumisani Ndlela] Zimbabwe's banks were reportedly scrambling for a solution after American Express began the process of withdrawing from the country.

Zim hotels lure locals to make up for low international traffic

[Dumisani Ndlela] Zimbabwe's hotel groups have embarked on an aggressive marketing campaign to woo locals into their hotels and lodges, as international concern on the country's crisis remains a major threat to international tourist arrivals.

Zim's insurance industry reaches for a lifeline

[Dumisani Ndlela] Zimbabwe's insurance companies, which have grappled with a major marketing nightmare posed by the fast erosion of the country's domestic currency, are reportedly battling to reach for a new lifeline in the form of foreign currency-denominated policies.

Zimbabwe: Govt calls emergency meeting as prices skyrocket

[Dumisani Ndlela] Government, today moved swiftly to curtail a rapid escalation of prices which threatened to erode the embattled new currency introduced on Friday.

Zimbabwe: Banks move towards automating payments system

[Dumisani Ndlela] Zimbabwe' banks have moved significantly towards automating the Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system, as the sector sought to curtail delays associated with manual and human intervention.

Zim manufacturing sector declines further

[Dumisani Ndlela] Zimbabwe's manufacturing sector output declined by 28% last year as the country's troubled economy remained mired in a crisis, a Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) survey has revealed.

Zimbabwe: Bid to resuscitate use of international credit cards falters

[Dumisani Ndlela] Zimbabwe's bid to resuscitate the use of international credit cards, abandoned at the start of a gruelling economic crisis now in its ninth year, has crumbled due to the continued erosion of the domestic currency, bankers said yesterday.

Zim govt worried by rejection of local currency

ADMA agrees on shorter ad payment terms as crisis worsens

[Dumisani Ndlela] The Zimbabwe Advertising Media Association (ADMA) has abandoned its 30-day payment system for new payment terms for newspaper advertisements as inflation continues to escalate in the crisis-torn economy. A statement issued by the ADMA chairman, Pilate Machadu, said a meeting of the ADMA executive committee held on July 1, 2008 had unanimously agreed to reduce the payment period.

Zim retail and banking sectors lurch into crisis

[Dumisani Ndlela] Zimbabwe's retail and banking sectors lurched into an unprecedented crisis after banks struggled to deal with an implosion of zeros on the country's beleaguered currency, throwing the point of sale (POS) transaction system into a quandary.

Global ad agency dumping Zim firm over Mugabe campaign?

[Dumisani Ndlela] Global marketing and advertising agency Young & Rubicam (Y&R) is to sell its stake in Zimbabwean associate Imago Young & Rubicam (Imago Y&R) after the Zimbabwean agency's involvement in an election campaign for President Robert Mugabe.

Zero defect of the worst kind haunts Zim networks

[Dumisani Ndlela] The outbreak of zeros on the country's struggling currency has caught up with Zimbabwe's mobile networks, with Net*One saying escalating tariff charges had hamstrung the production of airtime vouchers.

Zim forex trade halted as prices soar

[Dumisani Ndlela] Zimbabwe's central reserve bank temporarily halted foreign currency trade on the official market as concern intensified over escalating commodity prices.

Who wants to be a trillionaire...? I don't...

[Dumisani Ndlela] There's one thing that does not add up to one big spectacular zero at the moment in Zimbabwe, and that's its banknotes. In fact, the problem is too many zeros in a country with more billionaires than any other nation on earth - but Zimbabwe's 'rich' are starving.

Mugabe's worst foe runs amuck as prices escalate

[Dumisani Ndlela] Zimbabwe's ruling elite is battling to contain its worst foe - runaway inflation - as prices continue to skyrocket, threatening President Robert Mugabe's bid for re-election in a run-off pitting him against MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai on June 27, 2008.

Newsprint pricing affects conglomerate's performance

[Dumisani Ndlela] A ZSE-listed conglomerate says its newsprint production division had badly dented its performance during the half-year to March 31, 2008, blaming power outages and coal shortages for the crisis.

No plane sailing for Air Zimbabwe