The slashing of prices that is. In Zimbabwe roughly 1,300 shop owners and managers have been fined thousands of dollars following governmental raids across the country. Some shop owners have even been arrested for non-compliance of a direct order to cut product prices in half. These measures in an attempt to help curb the out of control inflation rate currently at 4,000%. Some independent institutions estimate that actual inflation rates may be upwards of 9,000%.

If businesses do not comply the government will turn to nationalized distribution where products can only be purchase by government officials designated to each community.

If the crisis continues the private distribution of oil and gas will be halted as early as Wednesday of this week. One solution includes the monetary backing of the South African rand, which may create some economic stability in the area.

The Chinese export Market has been making frequent appearances in the media over the last year, and yet still continues. Whether it’s tainted dog food or muffler dried tea leaves the country has been under much scrutiny over their production standards. According to one article, 19.1% of products made for domestic consumption were found to be substandard. Thankfully the U.S. continues to tighten their import regulations and standards yet some tainted products still seem to seep through.

Some of the botched products include:

- Contaminated pet food
- The recall of more than a million Thomas & Friends toy trains coated with toxic lead paint
- Fireworks (due to the unpredictable sense of direction).
- Millions of tubes of toothpaste that allegedly contained high levels of toxins that make up anti-freeze.
- Faulty tires.
- Within the last year, at least two dozen shipments of catfish, eel and tilapia from Meihua were denied entry into the US.
- Frozen white fish from China that had made it into the country is said to contain some contaminants.

Other countries may be even more susceptible due to their countries more lax food and product standards. According to a new Business Week article, hundreds of children and adults were killed in Panama from a counterfeit cold medicine containing glycerin- a chemical found in soap making. A lawsuit is currently being filed in the US over the incident.