By Staff Reporter
The Zambian Kwacha is expected to make further gains due to increased foreign supply in the economy, according to Reuters.
In a roundup of the performance of selected African currencies, Reuters stated that the Kwacha was joined by the Ugandan Shilling in the expected gains.
“The Ugandan and Zambian currencies are expected to strengthen in the next week to Thursday, while Nigeria’s and Ghana’s could be broadly unchanged, traders said,” reported Reuters. “Uganda’s shilling is seen firming modestly thanks to subdued importer appetite for hard currency.”
The Reuters Daily briefing quoted Uganda’s shilling at 3,578/3,588 to the United States dollar, showing stability from last Thursday’s close.
“(Forex) demand is pretty flat across the importer side and we haven’t seen any signs of a rebound,” one trader said.
Reuters stated that the Zambian Kwacha was expected to add to this week’s gains due to improved foreign exchange supply helped by mining sector inflows, with commercial banks quoting the local currency at K23.20 per dollar from 24.39 a week ago.
The media organisation further stated that the Nigeria’s Naira was seen staying within a tight range, supported by the central bank’s dollar sales.
The naira was quoted around 1,533 to the dollar in intraday trading on Thursday versus last week’s closing quote of 1,524.50 naira.
The currency was changing hands around 1,535 to the dollar in street trading on Thursday.
“I expect it to trade within a tight range. I don’t see it aggressively weakening from where we are,” a trader told Reuters. “Ghana’s Cedi is forecast to be little changed next week. LSEG data showed the cedi trading at 10.40 to the dollar, from 10.35 a week earlier. The currency is likely to hold steady in the coming week, as we expect the daily central bank auctions to continue in coming sessions, supported by reserves which have been recently reported to be healthy and significantly above IMF targets,”
Another trader said demand for the greenback was building but central bank interventions had managed to contain the pressure for now.
