Zimbabwe’s Gold Deliveries Declined in February
Zimbabwe witnessed a notable 22 per cent decrease in gold deliveries for February, recording 1.85 tonnes compared to the 2.38 tonnes submitted in January to Fidelity Gold Refinery (FGR). The decline is attributed to a substantial reduction in output from the artisanal and small-scale miners, who traditionally contribute around 60% of the country’s total bullion production.
In a departure from the usual trend, large-scale producers outperformed their small-scale counterparts delivering 988.7 kg, which is 53% of the total for the reviewed period.
Conversely, artisanal and small-scale miners delivered the remaining 47% of the yellow metal output at 864.3 kg, reflecting a notable 31.76% decline from January’s figure of 1266.51 kg.
Comparing year-on-year data, the 1.85 tonnes of bullion delivered by small miners in February 2024 marks a 2.2% decrease from the 1.89 tonnes achieved during the same period last year.
While production decline is usually attributed to rains, output from the ASM industry was expected to be higher due to little to no rainfall across across the country.