Zimbabwe gold deliveries to Fidelity continue to decline

According to the latest official data, there has been a significant decrease in GOLD deliveries to Fidelity Printers and Refineries (FPR).

Statistics from FPR indicate a 22% drop in gold deliveries in February, amounting to 1.95 tonnes compared to the 2.38 tonnes recorded in January.

In a departure from the norm, where small-scale miners usually dominate the deliveries to the refinery, large-scale bullion miners contributed 988.7 kgs, constituting 53% of the total for the month.

Small-scale miners contributed the remaining 47% of the gold output, totaling 864.3 kgs, reflecting a decline of 31.76% from the 1266.51 kgs recorded in January.

The 1.85 tonnes of bullion delivered by artisanal and small-scale miners in February marks a 2.2% year-on-year decrease from the 1.89 tonnes recorded for the same period last year.

Gold prices remained above US$2,000 per ounce in February, reaching US$2,120 per ounce on Wednesday, a figure ranking among gold's all-time high prices.

This downward trend has continued from the 2023 annual output, which saw a 15% depreciation due to various factors such as rising costs, power shortages, and government currency policies.

Observers in the market attribute the decline in deliveries to rising costs, payment delays by FPR, and governmental decisions made in the last quarter.

While miners anticipate an increase in output for 2024, they maintain a pessimistic outlook for the year due to concerns over costs, weak commodity prices, and increased power tariffs following the surge in costs by the national power utility ZESA.