Kenya Has Spent Nearly $1 Billion in Reserves to Weather Iran War Shock

Kenya has spent nearly $1.0 billion of its hard-currency reserves since the war began, and the central bank said it is prepared to deploy more reserves to curb excessive shilling weakness. The move signals proactive FX intervention that could stabilize the shilling but further depletes external buffers and raises pressure on reserve adequacy.

Analysis

Kenya has spent nearly $1.0 billion of its hard-currency reserves since the war began, and the central bank said it is prepared to deploy more reserves to curb excessive shilling weakness. The move signals proactive FX intervention that could stabilize the shilling but further depletes external buffers and raises pressure on reserve adequacy.