LOCAL PRODUCERS ADVISED TO BOOST OUTPUT

By SANFROSSA MANYINDA GREEN Party President Peter Sinkamba has advised local producers to significantly increase productivity so they can remain competitive on the basis of economies of scale. Mr Sinkamba said with the appreciation of the Kwacha, there was need to drive down inflation from the current 23 to less than 10 per cent. He said the stronger the local currency, the cheaper the imports which he said would cause demand for local products to fall. Mr Sinkamba said the more the kwacha gained, the more dollars they needed to pump in for the same expenditure. “I will not be surprised if mining companies start crying like babies from the sentimental appreciation. “This is because the sentimental appreciation is likely to erode gains they made when the price of copper shot from $4,700 per tonne in January to current $9,700 per tonne,” he said. Mr Sinkamba said that the rule of the thumb was that the cheaper the imports, the lower the inflation as appreciation makes imports more attractive. He added that this would affect not only individual local suppliers but also SMEs that rely on chain stores supplies because they have to cut costs to compete with importers.