KAMPALA: The Ugandan shilling slipped on Tuesday as the central bank sought dollars as part of routine purchases but found the greenback in short supply, a trader said.
At 0930 GMT commercial banks in Kampala quoted the currency of Africa's largest coffee exporter at 2,480/2,490, marginally weaker than Monday's close of 2,478/2,483.
"The central bank was in the market for its normal daily purchases but the market was short on dollars so it weakened the shilling a bit," said Faisal Bukenya, head of market making at Barclays Bank.
The central Bank of Uganda (BoU) says it buys $3.1 million daily from the interbank market to help maintain foreign reserve levels.
Bukenya said the shilling was seen trading in a tight range of 2,480-2,495 with the market seeking direction from Wednesday's bond sale results and inflation data for January due later this week.
The central bank is expected to sell a total 130 billion shillings ($52.43 million) worth of three and 10-year Treasury bonds. Strong foreign appetite for local securities typically supports the shilling as investors buy the local currency to snap up the debt.
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