- Decision
- Maintain
- Rate change
- 0 bps
- policy rate
- 35%
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s Monetary Policy Statement released on 6 February 2025 leaves the Bank Policy Rate unchanged at 35% per annum, judges prevailing monetary conditions “tight enough” to safeguard the recent gains in inflation and exchange-rate stability, and pledges to keep policy under review in line with price developments and growth prospects. Implementation of the tight stance is reinforced by unchanged statutory reserve ratios of 30% on demand deposits and 15% on savings and fixed deposits, creation of an intra-day liquidity facility, and continuation of strategic foreign-exchange interventions to deepen the Willing-Buyer Willing-Seller interbank market; limits on weekly FX purchases have been scrapped and authorised dealers may apply market-based margins. Month-on-month ZiG inflation fell from 37.2 % in October to 3.7 % in December before ticking up to 10.5 % in January, and is projected to average below 3 % in 2025, with annual inflation expected to end the year between 20 % and 30 %; GDP is forecast to rebound by 6 %, aided by an improved agricultural season, while the banking sector’s non-performing loan ratio stood at 3.67 % at end-2024, below the 5 % benchmark. Foreign reserves, comprising gold and FX holdings, have risen to about USD 550 mn—more than three times reserve money—supporting a current-account surplus that the central bank expects to widen to USD 611.6 mn in 2025. Against a backdrop of modest global growth (3.3 % in 2025) and easing worldwide inflation, the central bank vows to keep monetary conditions tight, continue reserves accumulation, and “walk the talk” on policies aimed at preserving price, currency and exchange-rate stability while supporting the targeted 6 % economic expansion.
Rate evolution
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe held the Bank policy rate at 35% from June 2025 through March 2026 before cutting it by 500 basis points to 30% in June 2026, leaving the rate 500 basis points lower over the period. The prolonged hold sought to entrench price and exchange rate stability, anchor inflation expectations and allow tight monetary conditions to transmit, as monthly inflation remained low, annual inflation fell into single digits, foreign currency inflows and reserves strengthened, and growth stayed robust despite uncertainty over global growth, trade tensions and geopolitical conflict. By March 2026, risk framing had shifted toward the oil-price shock and possible second-round effects on expectations, prompting continued restraint even though the Reserve Bank viewed the shock as supply-side and expected inflation to remain in single digits. In June, after inflation stayed below 5%, oil-price pass-through proved limited, expectations remained anchored, reserves rose and the exchange rate remained stable, the Committee cut the rate to support 5% projected growth but called the move a realignment rather than easing, while signalling meeting-by-meeting calibration and vigilance toward emerging risks.