Zimbabwe Wants Diamonds Cut and Polished Locally

Reuters reported that Zimbabwe is thinking about getting rid of tax royalties on locally cut and polished diamonds. The country’s government is looking to “add value to minerals and attract investment in the sector.”

As quoted in the market news:

The southern African country, which started its first diamond auction in December, has been selling rough diamonds but President Robert Mugabe’s government is pushing companies to cut and polish them locally.

In January the government increased the tax on diamond royalties to 15% from 10%.

Chidhakwa told a diamond conference in Harare the government could also remove value added tax on diamonds that are processed locally. This will likely be announced in the 2015 budget set for later this month, Chidhakwa said.

Click here to read the full Reuters report.