(3 minutes read)
A strong dollar is reported to be one of the reasons for the lack of demand for oil imports because of the higher cost to be in compounding the challenges being faced by Kenya making its imports excessively costly. Because of the strong dollar, imports have become more expensive since the country has to chip in more local currency to buy things
A strong dollar is reported to be one of the reasons for the lack of demand for oil imports because of the higher cost to be in compounding the challenges being faced by Kenya making its imports excessively costly. Because of the strong dollar, imports have become more expensive since the country has to chip in more local currency to buy things. The Kenyan shilling is down 6% this year. A rough estimate says that because of the firmer dollar, the prices have gone up by 20to 25% within a period of six months. ICE U.S. Dollar Index says that the dollar is up 18% this year against a basket of key currencies.
The cost of fuel and imported spare parts is soaring so much that some people are choosing to ditch their cars and take public transportation. To combat US inflation running at its fastest rate in 40 years, the Federal Reserve has raised its benchmark short-term interest rate five times this year. Kenya’s central bank also raised its benchmark interest rate by the biggest margin in more than seven years last September.
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https://trendsnafrica.com/kenyas-import-cover-plunges-to-the-lowest-in-seven-years
The currency of East Africa’s largest economy has been sliding to record lows against the dollar. On October 18, 1 U.S dollar sold 121.1706 Shillings while on August 2nd, it sold 119.0118 Shillings. Many other currencies are also doing badly. The Indian rupee has dropped more than 9% this year against the dollar, the Egyptian pound 20%, and the Turkish lira an astounding 28%. Ordinarily, countries could get some benefit from falling currencies because it makes their products cheaper and more competitive overseas. But at the moment, any gain from higher exports is muted because economic growth is sputtering almost every
