Kenya's foreign exchange reserves fell to a six-month low of 8.6 trillion shillings (about 7.93 billion U.S. dollars) on Friday in a week the local currency declined considerably against the greenback.

The Central Bank of Kenya in its weekly update said that the reserves fell from 8.14 billion dollars on Nov. 12 to the present level, a decline of 214 million dollars during the period.

The new dollar reserve position covers 4.87 months of import cover, down from 4.94 months of import cover. The last time the forex reserves stood at such a low was on May 20.

During the week, the shilling declined against the dollar to hit an all-time low of 109.50.

The apex bank is said to have sold an unspecified amount of dollars to prop up the currency to a level that does not destabilize the markets.

Read More

•  1 Dollar sinks for 3rd straight session as risk sentiment rises
•  2 African Investor? think global
•  3 Weak Shilling set to raise power bill
•  4 Rich Kenyans run to US dollar as Shilling dips amid Corona

Despite the considerable fall, the bank said the usable foreign exchange reserves remained adequate to cover imports.