NAIROBI: The Kenyan shilling held steady against the dollar on Tuesday and was seen remaining in a tight band as traders await the central bank's July 9 rate-setting meeting for a clear direction for the currency.
At 0715 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at 85.80/90 per dollar, barely changed from the previous day's close of 85.75/95.
"The market will be stable until we see what the monetary policy committee decides," said Sameer Lagadia, head of trading at Diamond Trust Bank.
Traders said the shilling was likely to trade in a tight band of 85.70-86.20 per dollar, with a break past either of those levels pointing to further strengthening or weakening.
The central bank cut its benchmark lending rate by 100 basis points to 8.5 percent at its last meeting in early May, signalling a pro-growth stance.
But inflation and economic growth data released on Friday pointed to a neutral stance by the central bank, analysts said.
While inflation accelerated to 4.91 percent in June, domestic product growth was surprisingly resilient in the first quarter of this year, quickening to 5.2 percent from 3.9 percent in the same period last year.
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