1 SHARES Share TweetNAIROBI, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) — The Kenyan shilling declined to a record low of 160 against the U.S. dollar Thursday, exerting pressure on the East African nation’s falling foreign exchange reserves and raising the cost of imports. As of Jan. 5, the forex reserves stood at a low of 6.78 billion dollars, corresponding to only 3.62 months of import cover. Besides the dollar, the shilling has also declined against the pound sterling and the euro. Against the pound sterling, the central bank on Thursday placed it at an all-time low of 204 from 182 in October 2023 and the euro at 175. The declined shilling, however, is expected to boost the country’s earnings from exports like coffee, horticulture and tea as exporters would earn more.

Source: Daily Nation January 12, 2024 09:46 UTC