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Business

Kenyan shilling steady, expected to weaken on importer demand

Published: 15 Jan 2015 - 01:23 pm | Last Updated: 17 Jan 2022 - 11:10 pm

 

NAIROBI-- The Kenyan shilling was steady on Thursday, but traders said it was expected to remain under pressure from importer demand for dollars and scarce inflows.

At 0726 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at 40/91.35 to the dollar, compared with Wednesday's close of 45/91.35.

"I think  demand is still heavy and the supply side is quite minimal," said Robert Gatobu, a trader at Bank of Africa. "In my view, we should still expect the shilling to be more bearish."

The shilling lost ground steadily last year, partly due to a downturn in tourism following attacks by Islamist al-Shabaab militants in the country.

Tourists are a leading source of dollars and other hard currencies for the east African nation.

Traders said they forecast the shilling, which has lost 0.8 percent so far this month, to trade in the 91.20 to 91.70 range against the dollar in coming days.

Reuters