Zimbabwe’s state Herald newspaper quotes official statistics saying annual inflation in Zimbabwe has hit 231 million percent.

Independent economists say the southern African nation’s hyperinflation is running in the billions of percentage points.

The Herald said Thursday that inflation reached 231 million percent in July.

An international economic package to help bail out the embattled nation was expected after the main political parties signed a power-sharing deal last month. But talks have deadlocked over how to divide Cabinet portfolios.