Zimbabwe uses platinum to pay back $400m Afreximbank debt

Zimbabwe is using the proceeds of its platinum exports to settle a $400-million loan from the African Export-Import Bank as the indebted nation turns to its mineral wealth to open lines of credit. The southern African nation’s reliance on its platinum resources to secure borrowing underscores the difficulty Zimbabwe faces in getting loans from international financiers. The country is saddled with $18-billion of debt and remains ineligible to new lines of credit from multilateral lenders including the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the African Development Bank.