IMF unhappy with Zambia's plan to end dollar use

Zambia's proposed ban on charging foreign currency in local transactions - punishable with 10-year jail terms - might defeat its own purpose, according to the International Monetary Fund.

The central bank of Africa's second-biggest copper producer in June unveiled the plans to curb increasing dollarization in the economy that it said blunts its tools to fight inflation.

Businesses have already pushed back on proposed regulations calling them "punitive" and warning that they may actually fuel price growth.