RTRS:Kenyan shilling gains vs dollar, seen firming up more
NAIROBI (Reuters) - The Kenyan shilling gained against the dollar on Friday, helped by commercial banks cutting long dollar positions ahead of the weekend, traders said, adding they also expect offshore inflows into the debt market to support the shilling in the days ahead.
At 0717 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at 83.10/30 per dollar, slightly up from Thursday's close of 84.20/40, but still hemmed in the 84.00-84.50 range it has traded in for the last three weeks.
"Guys who were sitting long are now cutting back to align their positions ahead of the weekend," said Peter Mutuku, a senior trader at Bank of Africa.
Traders said the shilling could remain supported by demand for government debt, which rose this week after yields climbed steadily and inflation tumbled to a 17-month low of 7.74 percent in July from 10.05 percent in June.
