NAIROBI: Kenya's central bank said on Friday that its official usable foreign exchange reserves climbed for the 11th straight week to $4.670 billion from $4.637 billion last week. Copyright Reuters, 2012 ...

KAMPALA: The Ugandan shilling inched lower against the dollar on Friday, undermined by dollar demand from the energy sector, a day after the local currency rallied on a central bank decision to leave interest rates unchanged. At 0903 GMT commercial banks in Kampala quoted the currency of Africa's leading coffee exporter at 2,455/2,465, a touch weaker than Thursday's close of 2,450/2,460. The Bank of Uganda (BoU) left its benchmark rate unchanged at 21 percent for the second straight month despite a fall in the consumer price index last month. The bank said while Uganda's year-on-year inflation had eased to 20.3 in April from March's revised 21.1 percent, rising food prices and uncertainty surrounding the trajectory of oil prices posed risks. "I think the dollar fell to a level where energy companies and other importers felt comfortable to buy," said Seif Kiwanuka, head of treasury at Diamond Trust Bank. "We're looking to trading in a stable ...

NAIROBI: The Kenyan shilling held steady against the dollar on Friday, a day after the central bank maintained its lending rate at 18 percent for the fifth month in a row, citing inflation risks. At 0736 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at 83.20-40 per dollar, barely changed from Thursday's close of 83.25-45. "Given that the central bank is above the four months import cover (FX reserves) it won't hesitate to support the shilling," said Ignatius Chicha, head of markets at CitiBank. The central bank's foreign exchange reserves rose to $4.6 billion last week, slightly above the statutory four months import cover, aided by release of funds by the International Monetary Fund to Kenya under a $750 million Extended Credit Facility. Traders said the shilling could get further support from the central bank in the form of interventions, through tools like repurchase agreements (repos), to take out excess liquidity from the market. A surge in ...