NAIROBI, April 1 (Reuters) - Kenya's shilling is expected to
gain ground against the dollar next week while the Zambian
kwacha could weaken, traders said.
KENYA
The Kenyan shilling KES= could benefit from muted importer
dollar demand in the midst of increased inflows from offshore
investors into a government infrastructure bond.
Commercial banks quoted the shilling at 109.10/30 per
dollar, compared with last Thursday's close of 109.65/109.85.
"Demand for dollars from importers is really subdued," a
trader at one commercial bank said.
ZAMBIA
The Kwacha ZMW= is likely to weaken against the dollar due
to demand for foreign exchange to pay for imports, including
petroleum products and agricultural inputs.
On Thursday, commercial banks quoted the currency of
Africa's second largest copper producer at 22.0750 per dollar,
slightly down from 22.0231 at the close of business a week ago.
"In the interim, the local unit is expected to trade range
bound with a bias towards the weaker side," Zambia National
Commercial Bank (ZANACO) said in a note.
UGANDA
The Ugandan shilling UGX= is expected to be stable over
the next one week amid a slump in demand due to the long Easter
weekend.
At 0849 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at
3,660/3,670, unchanged from last Thursday's close.
"Demand will be on the low side owing to the fact that
economic activity itself will be lacklustre because of the
Easter holiday," said an independent currency trader.
TANZANIA
Tanzania's shilling TZS= could weaken slightly next week
due to the end-of-month dollar demand from importers and
manufacturers.
On Thursday, commercial banks quoted the shilling at
2,310/2,326 per dollar, compared with 2,314/2,324 last week.