This archive report was first published on 9 September 2019.
On September 5, 2019, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) reported that the country's official foreign exchange reserves had dropped to a nine-week low of Sh957 billion.
The reserves fell by Sh3.53 billion, or $34 million, compared to the previous week's decline of Sh13.9 billion.
According to the CBK, the reserves remain sufficient, exceeding both the country's and EAC minimum threshold of import cover.
‘The CBK usable foreign exchange reserves remained adequate at $9.218 billion (5.76 months of import cover) as at September 5. This meets the CBK’s statutory requirement to endeavour to maintain at least four months of import cover and the EAC region’s convergence criteria of 4.5 months of import cover,’ said CBK in its latest weekly bulletin.
The falling reserves have come at a time when the dollar demand has gone up, putting pressure on the shilling’s exchange rate, which stood at 103.82 at close of trading last week.
