KAMPALA, Jan 2 (Reuters) - Kenya's shilling is expected to
strengthen in the coming week, while the Tanzanian and Ugandan
currencies are seen stable and Zambia's kwacha is likely to
remain under pressure, currency traders told Reuters.
KENYA
The Kenyan shilling KES= is forecast to be supported by
inflows from diaspora remittances and market players trimming
their long dollar positions as business resumes after the
holiday season, traders said.
Commercial banks quoted the shilling at 100.85/101.05 per
dollar, unchanged from Friday's close.
"Market players tend to close the year long on dollars, at
the beginning of the year we tend to see a reversal, ...
offloading their long dollar positions," said a trader from one
commercial bank.
UGANDA
The Ugandan shilling UGX= is seen trading stable in the
next few days amid thin demand as the pace of business slowly
picks up after the Christmas and New Year holidays.
Commercial banks quoted the shilling at 3,660/3,690,
unchanged from Tuesday's close.
"Activity at most business will take a while to resume and
accelerate to full speed, that will reflect in demand for
dollars," said a trader at a leading commercial bank.
He said the shilling would probably oscillate around the
3,660-3,675 level for the next week.
TANZANIA
The Tanzanian shilling TZS= is expected to hold steady
next week as most businesses and traders return gradually from
holidays.
Commercial banks quoted the local currency at 2,293/2,303,
the same levels recorded a week earlier.
"The shilling is expected to remain stable next week, in the
same levels as has been the case for the last three weeks
because most organisations and traders are still on holidays and
the market is still quiet now," said a trader at one commercial
bank in Dar es Salaam.
He said market activity was expected to return to normal in
the second week of January.
ZAMBIA
The Zambian kwacha ZMW= is likely to remain under pressure
against the U.S. dollar next week because of sustained demand
for hard currency.
On Thursday, commercial banks quoted the currency at 14.1900
per dollar from a close of 13.7390 a week ago.
"The pressure of imports and aspects of debt servicing is
still there," independent financial analyst Maambo Hamaundu
said.