NAIROBI, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Kenya shilling on Thursday dropped further as Central Bank's support failed to stem the fall that started Wednesday as the country's political crisis deepened.
The shilling traded at a new low of 103.42 against the U.S. dollar, having dropped from an average of 103.40 in the previous session.
The apex bank quoted the currency at 103.42 against the dollar, a low position from the previous day's 103.36.
Commercial banks, on the other hand, placed the currency at an even lower position of between 103.50 and 103.60, after going down from Wednesday's close of between 103.45 and 103.55.
Traders at the banks blamed the current plunge to the worsening political situation, indicating that the currency would continue on a negative path affected by uncertainty over the Oct. 26 polls.
On Wednesday, the Central Bank was forced to intervene in the forex market to buttress the shilling which declined.
The bank is said to have sold unspecified amount of dollars from its 7.4 billion dollars reserve, an equivalent of 4.9 months of import cover, to stop the shilling from declining to levels that would destabilize the market.
Analysts have attributed the fall to speculation buying of the dollar as people seek to stay safe in the greenback ahead of the East African nation's repeat polls. Enditem
