The government announced sweeping price cuts in a bid to curb inflation on Tuesday and said it set up a unit drawn from all its security agencies to enforce the measures.
But most businesses -- including gas stations ordered to reduce the price of scarce fuel by two-thirds -- ignored the government's directive. There were no reports of security agents arresting business managers on the first day of the ordered cuts.
"We're doing business as usual. We can't slash prices just like that. It doesn't work that way," said one store manager, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Zimbabweans are less willing to speak on record about the economy, fearing their comments will violate new laws which prohibit criticism of the government.
Far from cutting prices, retailers have been struggling to keep up with the falling value of the Zimbabwean dollar, in some cases curtailing shopping hours to give employees time to put new, higher prices on goods.
Industry Minister Obert Mpofu announced the cuts of up to half and two-thirds on a range of basic goods and services from transportation for commuters to bread, sugar, meat, milk, cornmeal and even newspapers, state radio reported on Tuesday.
Mpofu ordered businesses to revert to June 18 prices while the latest increases were investigated by the newly formed state Prices and Incomes Commission to find out if they were justified.
He accused what he called "unscrupulous and insensitive economic players" and "economic saboteurs" of profiteering and using price increases as a political ploy in a campaign to bring down the government.
He said the new enforcement unit comprised all security arms of the state.
Mpofu ordered the reduction of the gasoline price from 180,000 Zimbabwe dollars (about US$1 at the dominant black market exchange rate) to Z$60,000 (US$0.30 at the unofficial rate) a liter, or about one fourth of a gallon.
Prices of cooking oil, tires, soap and bus fares were to be more than halved. Newspapers controlled by the state were to reduce their price by one-third, Mpofu said.
Store managers said that Mpofu was asking them to sell goods cheaper than it cost the stores to buy the goods they already held in stock.
Shop closures and more shut downs of loss-making businesses along with soaring inflation were cited last month by independent consultants as a likely outcome of the nation's economic meltdown, saying that may lead to civil unrest by the end of the year.
Official inflation is running at 4,500 percent, the highest in the world, but independent financial institutions calculate real inflation on essential goods at closer to 9,000 percent.
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