NAIROBI: The Kenyan shilling edged down against the dollar on Thursday and traders said the central bank was likely to inject dollars into the market to stem further losses.
At 0750 GMT, commercial banks posted the shilling at 91.80/90 per dollar, slightly down from the previous day's close of 91.70/80.
The shilling last traded at these levels in November 2011.
"The pressure is coming from a build-up of (dollar) demand and right now the supply side is quite wanting... tourism is muted and that is quite a challenge," said Chris Muiga, trader at National Bank.
Hard currency inflows from the tourism business fell last year after a series of gun and grenade attacks, blamed on
Islamists from neighbouring Somalia, scared off tourists.
Traders said the shilling was likely to keep weakening as importers buy dollars to pay their end month bills. The central bank was however likely to intervene, through sale of dollars, if the currency fell to 92.00, they added.
The central bank pumped in an unspecified amount of dollars into the market on Tuesday after the shilling fell.
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