Shilling stable, infrastructure bond attracts inflows

Nairobi; Kenya: The Kenya Shilling was unchanged against the dollar on Friday and traders said they were keenly watching inflows from the extension of the sale of an infrastructure bond. At 07:35 GMT, commercial banks posted the shilling at 89.30/40, similar to the previous day’s close.
The shilling has traded at its present levels since Wednesday’s close, and traders have said the sale of the bond was attracting currency inflows that balanced end-month dollar demand from importers.
“Being the last day of the week and coincidentally the last day of the month, we might see a quiet trading session, as market players don’t want to rock the boat,” said a trader with a leading commercial bank.
He said the shilling was likely to receive support from the Sh20 billion offer by the central bank of an 12-year infrastructure bond that was auctioned earlier this month. —Reuters