Zimbabwe raked in US$ 1.3 billion from mineral exports last year, a jump of over 100 per cent over the 2009 figures, an industry body said Thursday.
The Chamber of Mines, a representative body for the mining industry, said platinum topped the earnings with US$ 409 million, followed by gold with US$ 380 million.
It said ferrochrome was in the third place, with US$ 134 million and coal fourth, with US$ 88 million.
The Chamber of Mines said firm international mineral prices and increased production in Zimbabwe accounted for the increase in export earnings, which jumped from US$ 600 million in 2009.
The figures exclude diamond earnings, whose export is independently handled by the government.
Diamond export figures for last year are yet to be released by the government.
Zimbabwe’s mining industry, one of the biggest sub-sectors of the economy, is recovering from ten years of an economic meltdown, characterised by hyper-inflation and shortages of inputs and electricity.
The country has some of the biggest mineral reserves in the world, including that of diamonds and platinum, while in the case of the later, Zimbabwe has the second biggest deposits in the world
