Zimbabwe Inflation Spirals Past 2000%

Zimbabwe's annual inflation jumped to a record 2 200% in March, central bank Governor Gideon Gono said on Thursday as the country's economic and political crisis deepened.

He dismissed calls to devalue the Zimbabwean currency, saying it will remain at its official peg of Z$250 to the United States dollar -- almost 100 times less than the black-market rate -- although he said the bank will buy foreign exchange at a new rate to help build a "drought stabilisation fund".

Zimbabwe, once the breadbasket of Southern Africa, is crippled by foreign currency and fuel shortages, unemployment of more than 80% and the highest rate of inflation in the world.