NAIROBI – The Kenyan shilling held steady against the dollar on Friday as investors awaited the outcome of a re-run of a presidential election boycotted by opposition leader Raila Odinga.
The repeat vote was ordered by the Supreme Court after it nullified the initial Aug. 8 vote on procedural irregularities.
At 0630 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at 103.85/95, unchanged from Tuesday’s close. Markets were closed on Wednesday and Friday for the election, which failed to happen in some opposition strongholds due to violence.
“We don’t expect the numbers to be announced any time before tomorrow evening. I think it is more or less status quo for the shilling until the numbers are announced or the opposition leader does something,” said a currency trader at a commercial bank.
The election board postponed voting by 48 hours in four western counties where pro-opposition youths clashed with the police.
Odinga told his supporters on Wednesday he was transforming his NASA coalition into a “resistance movement” and said he would give an update on Oct. 27.
The run-up to the repeat election was marked by opposition protests, creating fears of violence a decade after 1,200 people were killed in ethnic fighting that followed a disputed presidential election.
The shilling slipped to its lowest level since mid August earlier this week as nervous foreign investors exited shilling assets ahead of the poll and some importers bought their dollar requirements in advance.(Reuters)
