Zimbabwe c bank says support plan aids gold mines

ZIMBABWE - Zimbabwe's Reserve Bank said today, 31 July, a support programme for gold producers introduced earlier this year had helped boost production in a sector where high costs had threatened several mines with collapse.

In April the government said it would start buying gold at a support price fixed to factor in production costs in a bid to boost the troubled mining industry and cushion the sector against drops in international prices.

The support price is currently pegged at U.S. $343 an