The Kenyan Shilling on Monday remained stable against the US dollar and other global currencies, a few days after the Federal Reserve slashed rates by 50 basis points.
On Friday, September 19, the Kenyan shilling was quoted at Kshs 129.20 per US dollar compared to KES 129.18 per dollar at the close of the previous week.
The shilling’s continued stability path was primarily attributed to the increase in remittance inflows. The remittance inflows in August this year amounted to US$ 427.2 million compared to US$ 354.3 million in August 2023, representing a 12.7% year-to-year increase.
According to the Central Bank of Kenya, the United States remains the largest source of remittances to the country, representing 56.0% in August 2024.
The usable foreign exchange reserves stood at US$ 7.86 billion as of September 19. The reserve is adequate to cover the country’s imports for at least 4 months.
Also, CBK reported stable liquidity in the money market for the week ending September 2024, on the backdrop of open market operations. The average interbank rate stood rose from 12.66% on September 12 to 12.70% on September 19.
In the government securities market, the treasury bill issued on September 19 received bids worth Ksh 30.4 billion, a subscription rate of 126.4%. CBK received bids totaling Ksh 22.6 billion for the reopened 10-year and 20-year fixed-rate bonds, a subscription rate of 75.5%.
Bond turnover in the local secondary market reduced by 9.67% during the week ending September 19. In the global market, yields on Kenya’s Eurobonds reduced by 78.7 basis points.
Related: Central Bank Eyes 30 Billion From Two Reopened Bonds
