The volume and value of cheques returned unpaid on account of insufficiently funded accounts continued to decrease following the issuance of the directives on dishonoured cheques and direct debit instructions by the Bank of Zambia in the second quarter of 2010. The volume of unpaid cheques decreased by 15% to 4,202 (Quarter 2: 4,929). The public is advised to ensure that they have sufficient funds on their accounts whenever they issue cheques in order to avoid charges. Economic reform programme An IMF Mission was in Zambia from 2nd to 15th September, and 28th October to 3rd November 2010, to conduct the 5th Review under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement. Overall, the mission was satisfied with the programme performance and reached agreement with the Zambian authorities on a set of macroeconomic policies and structural measures for the remainder of 2010 and for 2011. The policies and structural measures would pave the way for the completion of the Fifth Review of the ECF arrangement, subject to approval by the IMF’s Executive Board. 4  BIS Review 148/2010  Total disbursed poverty reduction budget support (PRBS) in the third quarter of 2010 amounted to US $ million from the World Bank. A total of US $ million mining tax revenue was received while the Bank of Zambia foreign exchange purchases from the market amounted to US $ million. Preliminary data indicate that the quantitative performance criteria under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement were observed as at end-September 2010 and that all structural benchmarks were generally on track.
Europe accounted for 9,404 followed by Zambia (residents) at 7,308 while North America, Rest of America and Australasia were 4,016, 2,810 and 1,412 respectively. The rise in the entries into the country’s national parks was in part attributed to the world cup and improved weather conditions. External sector developments Foreign exchange market The slow pace of economic recovery in the United States continued to cast a dark shadow on the US dollar, the world’s most traded currency. The lingering economic uncertainty and the burgeoning fiscal deficit drove the US dollar weaker across all currencies. Therefore, benefitting from the broad based dollar weakness and relatively high levels of US dollar liquidity in the market, the Kwacha posted a 5.0% gain against the American currency. A sustained rise in the copper prices at the London Metal Exchange to an average of $ per tonne in the third quarter from $ tonne gave further support to the domestic currency, with the interbank rate ending the period at an average of K4,869.21 per US dollar. The weakness in the US dollar saw the Euro and the pound sterling rebound, underpinned by austerity measures instituted in Greece and the United Kingdom and favourable bank stress test results in the European Union banking sector. Reflecting this recovery, the South African rand, which tracks the euro, also performed well, posting significant gains in the currency market. These developments saw the Kwacha depreciate against the three currencies during the review period.