LUSAKA, May 6 (Reuters) - Zambia's currency will likely
remain under pressure against the U.S. dollar next week while
Uganda's is seen firming. The Kenyan, Nigerian and Tanzanian
currencies are expected to hold steady.
ZAMBIA
The kwacha ZMW= is likely continue trading on the back
foot against the dollar next week as demand for hard currency
remains high with little or no supply being seen.
On Thursday, commercial banks quoted the currency of
Africa's second largest copper producer at 22.3200 per dollar
from a close of 22.2700 a week ago.
"The local unit is likely to maintain the current trajectory
with minimal movement to the upside should there be no
improvement in supply," Access Bank's local unit said in a note.
UGANDA
The Uganda shilling UGX= is expected to firm, helped by
commercial banks selling off their excess dollar holdings.
Commercial banks quoted the shilling at 3,550/3,560,
compared with last Thursday's close of 3,570/3,580.
"A demand slump from importer customers is continuing and
that factor will likely push players to shed more of their
dollar holdings," said an independent foreign exchange trader in
the capital Kampala, referring to commercial banks.
KENYA
Kenya's shilling KES= is expected to be stable, with
traders anticipating low importer dollar demand to continue.
On Thursday, commercial banks quoted the shilling at
106.70/106.90 compared to last Thursday's close of
107.70/107.75.
"I expect the shilling to be range-bound, between 106.00 and
107.00," one trader said of the coming week, noting that the
upcoming government bond sale would also provide a boost.
NIGERIA
The naira is seen unchanged in the coming week after the
central bank extended an incentive offer to recipients of dollar
remittances in an attempt to encourage more diaspora inflow,
traders said.
The currency NGNFX=BDCN traded within a range of 410.37
naira to 420.50 naira on the over-the-counter spot market on
Thursday.
It was quoted at 485 per dollar on the black market
NGNFX=BDCN on Thursday, a level it touched two weeks ago and
remained flat on the official market NGN=D1 , which is backed
by the central bank, at 381 naira, where it has been stuck since
last July.
TANZANIA
Tanzania's shilling TZS= is expected to hold steady with
dollar demand from the manufacturing sector matched by inflows.
Commercial banks quoted the shilling at 2,314/2,324 on
Thursday, unchanged from its close a week earlier.
"We expect normal demand from manufacturing which is going
to match with the inflows from business operations," a trader at
one commercial bank in Dar es Salaam said.