AFRICA-FX-Nigerian and Ghanaian currencies among those seen stable
Nigeria's naira is seen broadly unchanged on both the official and parallel markets, supported by central bank interventions and foreign portfolio inflows.
The unit was quoted at 1,524 naira to the dollar in intraday trading on Thursday, versus a closing quote of 1,527 naira a week earlier.
The currency was changing hands at 1,570 naira to the dollar in street trading on Thursday.
"The naira is expected to remain relatively stable in the coming week largely due to continued inflows from portfolio investors drawn by high yields that are boosting market liquidity," a trader said.
Ghana's cedi is forecast to remain stable as interbank market activity is subdued.
LSEG data showed the cedi trading at 10.30 to the dollar, unchanged from a week ago.
"The cedi continued to hold its ground against the dollar this week, supported by sustained central bank intervention amid a slowdown in interbank activity," said Chris Nettey, head of trading Stanbic Bank Ghana.
"We expect a similar trend to persist in the coming sessions," he added.
Andrews Akoto, head of trading Absa Bank Ghana, also said he expected the dollar/cedi pair to stay range-bound.
Uganda's shilling is also seen little changed as mid-month tax payments due in local currency limit corporate foreign-currency demand.
Commercial banks quoted the shilling at 3,579/3,589 to the dollar, compared to last Thursday's close of 3,582/3,592.
"(Dollar) demand will be a little soft because of mid-month tax obligations," a trader said, adding that the shilling was likely to swing in the 3,550-3,580 range.
Kenya's shilling is seen holding steady in quiet trade.
Commercial banks quoted the shilling at 128.90/129.40 per dollar, compared with last Thursday's closing rate of 129.00/50.
"It has been relatively stable. We expect this stability to continue as we usually have minimal activity mid-month," a trader said.
Zambia's kwacha is expected to be trade around its current levels, but some analysts said it could gain further out as the economic outlook improves.
On Thursday the kwacha was quoted at 24.39 per dollar from 24.45 a week ago.
Fintech company Ebury said in a report that it was upbeat on the outlook for the kwacha.
"Zambia appears to be largely overcoming its debt challenges and drought-related economic disruptions," the report said.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Coin Geek
2 hours ago
- Coin Geek
Namibia to launch a new payments system based on India's UPI
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... Namibia will soon roll out a new payments system based on the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), India's ultra-successful instant payments protocol. A year ago, the Bank of Namibia and the International Payments Limited (NIPL), a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), signed a partnership to develop the new system. A week ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the Southern African nation to seal the deal. After the visit, a statement by the External Affairs Ministry revealed that the rollout is scheduled for September. With three million residents, Namibia is one of Africa's smaller nations. The government has been pushing digital payments in recent years, and last year, the market hit $1.4 billion in value. Namibian businesses mainly rely on electronic funds transfers, a sector that recorded $68 billion in transaction value last year. UPI would significantly boost this rapidly growing market. Launched nine years ago, the system has become one of the world's largest payments infrastructures, with over 500 million active users. In May, it recorded ₹25.14 lakh crore ($294 billion) in monthly transaction value. Recently, it hit 650 million daily transactions, surpassing Visa (NASDAQ: V) as the world's leading real-time payments system. UPI surpasses Visa to become the world's leading real-time payment system, processing over 650 million transactions daily. Achieving this in just 9 years highlights its unmatched scale and momentum. From India to the world, UPI is leading the digital payment revolution! A recent International Monetary Fund (IMF) report revealed that UPI now processes over 18 billion transactions monthly, propelling India to the top of the global fast payments race. 'India now makes faster payments than any other country. At the same time, proxies for cash usage [such as ATM withdrawals] have fallen,' said the IMF. UPI has expanded beyond India and is now available in seven other countries, including Sri Lanka and Singapore. It has also expanded to the United Arab Emirates, enhancing local payments and boosting cross-border remittances between the two nations. The UAE-India corridor is one of the busiest for the Gulf nation; over seven million Indians visited the UAE last month, its largest group of international visitors. Back in Namibia, the new UPI-based system will play a significant role in trade between the two nations, surging from $3 million at the turn of the millennium to $600 million. Several Indian firms are pursuing business interests across Namibia in manufacturing, mining, and services. While Namibia is the only African country with a formal agreement to integrate UPI, others are also exploring partnerships. In his visit to Ghana earlier this month, PM Modi pledged his government's commitment to integrating the payments system in the West African nation. 'In the field of FinTech, India is ready to share its experience of UPI digital payments with Ghana,' he stated. Rwanda and Mozambique are also reportedly exploring similar partnerships. However, India's largest trade partner on the continent is South Africa, with bilateral trade volume hitting $19 billion in 2024. South Africa to launch its first digital ID system Elsewhere, the South African government is set to launch its first digital ID system to modernize government services. Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber revealed last week that his ministry has been working on a digital ID policy, which will soon be submitted to the Cabinet for approval before seeking public feedback. With a digital ID, South Africans will access government services easily on any smart device, curbing the need to visit government offices. It will be built atop the existing Smart ID framework, which relies on features such as biometric data to boost security, but which the minister says is five times more vulnerable to fraud than the new system. Schreiber added that the new digital ID will impact other sectors that rely on identity verification beyond government services. '[The] Digital ID will also enable users to remotely authenticate themselves, laying the foundation for a digital revolution not only for government services, but also for critical private sector services like banking, finance, and insurance,' he told lawmakers while presenting his department's budget. South Africa joins over a dozen other African countries pursuing digital IDs. Ethiopia recently set a target of 90 million digital IDs over the next two years, while Namibia intends to launch its new system next year. Nigeria and Zambia have also launched similar initiatives in partnership with the World Bank. Watch: Tech redefines how things are done—Africa is here for it
Reuters
3 hours ago
- Reuters
Dollar hits 15-week high against yen as consumer prices gain
NEW YORK, July 15 (Reuters) - The dollar reached a 15-week high against the Japanese yen on Tuesday after U.S. data that showed a rise in consumer prices in June, though the increase was not big enough to change expectations on when the Federal Reserve is likely to resume interest rate cuts. Expectations that U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff policies will increase price pressures are seen keeping the Fed on hold as policymakers wait to see their impact. Fed Chair Jerome Powell has said he anticipated prices will rise this summer. "Tariffs are in the data, but it's not as devastating as many feared,' said Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management in Menomonee Falls in Wisconsin. The Consumer Price Index increased 0.3% last month after edging up 0.1% in May. That was the largest gain since January. In the 12 months through June, the CPI advanced 2.7% after rising 2.4% in May. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a 0.3% monthly increase and a 2.6% rise on a year-over-year basis. Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the CPI rose 0.2% in June after edging up 0.1% in the prior month. In the 12 months through June, core inflation was 2.9%, inching up after holding at 2.8% for three straight months. Fed funds traders are pricing in 48 basis points of cuts by year-end, little changed from before the data, with the first rate reduction expected in September. "A slightly softer-than-expected June core inflation reading keeps alive the chances of a September Federal Reserve interest rate cut, but the risk is that we get less benign prints for July and August," James Knightley, chief international economist, US at ING said in a note. "That means we will need to see clear evidence of softer jobs figures to trigger Fed action before December." The euro was last down 0.27% on the day at $1.1631, the lowest since June 25. Against the Japanese yen , the dollar strengthened 0.66% to 148.68, the highest since April 3. Sterling weakened 0.21% to $1.3399, the lowest since June 23. The dollar weakened after Trump in April announced larger than expected tariffs, but then delayed many of the levies pending negotiations with trading partners. Trump last week announced higher tariffs would come into effect on August 1 for imports from a range of countries, including Mexico, Japan, Canada and Brazil, and the European Union, though market reaction this time was relatively muted. 'The market is ignoring the tariffs until it becomes clear whether there's going to be sort of a major escalation like there was with China in April or if this is just yet another step on the way to some sort of deal,' said Steve Englander, head of global G10 FX research and North America macro strategy at Standard Chartered Bank's NY Branch. In addition to tariffs and inflation, markets are also focused on the U.S. fiscal and debt outlook, and the pressure the Trump administration is placing on Powell as he keeps rates on hold. 'There are a lot of balls in the air. It's just that it's unclear how heavy each one of them is, and which one is going to have the biggest impact when it lands,' Englander said. Trump said on Tuesday that consumer prices were low and the Fed should bring down interest rates now. Powell has also asked the U.S. central bank's inspector general to review the costs involved in the renovation of its historic headquarters in Washington, as Trump administration officials intensify their criticism of how the Fed is being run. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Tuesday that a "formal process" is already starting to identify a potential successor to Powell, whose term will end in May. Bitcoin fell 1.52% to $118,394. It hit a record $123,153 on Monday as investors bet on long-sought policy wins for the industry this week, which has been dubbed "crypto week" by U.S. Republicans.
Reuters
4 hours ago
- Reuters
Traders stick to bets on September Fed rate cut after inflation report
July 15 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve will likely be able to start cutting short-term borrowing costs by September, traders continued to bet on Tuesday, after a government report showed a widely expected increase in consumer prices last month. The market-priced probability of a Fed interest-rate cut by September remained around 60% after the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the consumer price index rose 2.7% in June from a year earlier, and underlying inflation was up 2.9%. Traders continue to see just a 5% chance of a rate cut this month, with Fed policymakers mostly saying they want to see more data before reducing rates.
