Kenya’s shilling is forecast to gain ground against the dollar in the next week to Thursday, while Uganda’s shilling and Ghana’s cedi will weaken, traders said.
Kenya
The Kenyan shilling is expected to gain ground against the dollar supported by inflows from remittances and horticulture exports, traders said.
Commercial banks quoted the shilling at 100.60/80 per dollar, the same as last Thursday’s close.
“We’ve seen reduced buying activity from importers … cumulatively remittances offer support,” said a trader from a commercial bank.
Uganda
The Ugandan shilling is forecast to weaken in the coming days, hurt by commercial banks covering their short dollar positions.
Commercial banks quoted the shilling at 3,772/3,782, compared to last Thursday’s close of 3,755/3,765.
“I think we’ll start to see some players building positions in anticipation of stronger importer demand in the last quarter,” said a trader at a leading commercial bank.
Ghana
Ghana’s cedi could remain under pressure after dipping to new lows this week on unmatched corporate greenback demand amid a broader weakness in emerging markets assets, analysts said.
Despite increased weekly dollar support by the central bank, the currency has declined steadily in the past two weeks. It opened Thursday’s trading at 4.86 to the greenback after closing at a new low of 4.93 on Wednesday, compared to 4.87 a week ago.
Traders project that the resistance 5.00 cedi-to-dollar mark could soon be tested should the central bank’s intervention fail to fill the demand gap. “We project the dollar to trade within the 4.94 to 4.97 range in the week ahead,” currency analyst Raphael Adubila said.
Zambia
The Kwacha is likely to remain under pressure, weighed down by rising demand for dollars from importers.
Commercial banks quoted the currency of Africa’s No.2 copper producer at 10.2800 per dollar from a close of 10.2000 a week ago.
“Looming sentiments about local budget deficits and debt distress could be additional driving forces behind the current constrained dollar supply, leading to the kwacha’s continued depreciation,” the local branch of South Africa’s First National Bank (FNB) said in a note.
