NAIROBI, September 18, 2026
The Kenya Shilling remained stable against major international and regional currencies during the week ending September 17, even as remittance inflows increased by six percent in August 2026.According to the Central Bank of Kenyaโs weekly bulletin, the Shilling exchanged at KSh129.62 per US dollar on September 17, compared with KSh129.45 on September 10.The CBK said foreign exchange reserves remained adequate at 10.088 billion US dollars, equivalent to 6.1 months of import cover, exceeding the statutory requirement of at least four months.Meanwhile, remittance inflows increased to 451.8 million US dollars in August 2026, up from 426.1 million dollars recorded in August 2025, representing a 6 percent increase.However, cumulative remittances for the 12 months to August 2026 declined by 1.3 percent to 5.013 billion dollars, compared with 5.079 billion dollars recorded during a similar period in 2025.In the government securities market, the Treasury bill auction held on September 17 attracted bids worth 42.7 billion shillings against an advertised amount of 28 billion shillings, representing a performance rate of 152.6 percent.The CBK also reported that a Treasury bond auction held on September 16 received bids totaling 81.4 billion shillings against an advertised 60 billion shillings, representing a performance rate of 135.7 percent.The Nairobi Securities Exchange, however, recorded declines during the week. The NSE All Share Index fell by 4.96 percent, while the NSE 25 and NSE 20 indices declined by 5.85 percent and 6.47 percent, respectively.The bulletin further reported that inflationary pressures remained a concern globally. United Kingdom headline inflation rose to 3.1 percent in August 2026, while the US Federal Reserve raised its federal funds target range by 25 basis points to between 3.75 and 4 percent.International commodity markets also recorded mixed movements, with Murban crude oil prices declining to 94.70 US dollars per barrel, while gold prices increased to 4,340.09 dollars per ounce.
Source: Central Bank of Kenya Weekly Bulletin, September 18, 2026.
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