• Recently, NTS reported 163 volumes growth

  • RBZ promised to clear forex backlog in 45 days

Harare – Listed tyre distributor and retailer, National Tyre Services has tied any future possible growth of the business to the availability of foreign currency, critical in procuring stock for group’s operations.

Companies in Zimbabwe obtain foreign currency through the Foreign Exchange Auction Market which was instituted in June 2020 to avail funds to formal businesses, thus providing a modicum of pricing stability among recipients of the funds allotted.

In a statement accompanying the trading update for the first quarter ended 31 June 2021, the group said, "Availability of foreign currency to import stock is key for sustainable business growth".

The group reported a 163% volumes growth across all operating units in its first quarter ended 31 June 2021 owing to robust survival strategies employed by the company.

Meanwhile, the forex market is being faced with a severe test of high backlog with some companies complaining of waiting up to 4 weeks to retrieve the funds.

Earlier this month, it was reported that the Central Bank was facing a backlog of about US$200 million, which the government, through RBZ promised to clear in 45 days.

However, the injection of almost US$1 billion in the country by IMF is expected to boost foreign currency liquidity in the country.

On Tuesday this week, the currency auction registered a new record for the demand of foreign currency as allocations amounted to US$51,69 million, breaking the previous record of US$49.10 million.

Signalling the importance of foreign currency on company’s growth was the largest amount of forex allotted for raw materials, machinery and equipment imports which amounted to US$14,9 and US$8,3 million on the main auction.

National Tyre Services Limited is the largest distributor and retailer of new tyres and tubes for the automotive industry in Zimbabwe with 13 retail outlets situated throughout the country and 4 of these are located in Harare.

On ZSE stock market yesterday, the company traded 1000 volumes to close at ZW1080.00

The group has a net market value of ZWL2,742,822,136 on the local bourse.

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