Shilling in slight gains against the dollar

NAIROBI, Kenya: The shilling eked out modest gains against the dollar on Wednesday and traders said the band it was likely to trade in had widened following a successful debut Eurobond.

At 0655 GMT, commercial banks posted the shilling at 87.50/60 per dollar, slightly up from Tuesday's close of 87.55/65.

"It is more reaction to the positive news on the Eurobond," said a senior trader with a commercial bank, referring to the
country's maiden sovereign bond that was heavily oversubscribed.

"We would most likely be much stronger if it wasn't for the security concerns which definitely will have a very negative impact on tourism," he said.

Militants carried out two attacks on the coast earlier this week and killed 65 people, the latest in a spate of gun and bomb
assaults that have hurt the vital tourism sector. 

The trader said the shilling could face dollar resistance at 87.25, effectively widening its likely trading band over the next few days to 87.25-88.00 from the previous range of 87.50-88.00.