Zimbabwe's Price Controls Result in Empty Shelves

The empty shelves above in Zimbabwe are the result of gov't. imposed price controls, forcing shopkeepers to lower prices by 50% in response to suring inflation that is estimated to be 4,500%.

Two-liter cartons of a popular orange drink, priced at 400,000 Zimbabwe dollars a week ago, were sold for 120,000 dollars at the controlled price, causing supplies to disappear immediately.

According to the NY Times: "Store shelves emptied last week as shoppers scooped up low-priced goods once the controls took effect."

According to another report, "Government officials claim that the inflation rate of 4,500% - the highest in the world - is solely caused by greedy shopkeepers raising their prices for no good reason. Government propaganda tries to portray businessmen as the true authors of the economic collapse - deflecting blame from President Mugabe."

"Earlier this year, President Robert Mugabe blamed "unbridled greed" for the country's economic woes," according to this BBC story.

MP: Could Zimbabwe's 4,500% inflation have anything to do with excessive money creation and "unbridled government incompetence"?