African currencies week ahead: Zambian, Ugandan currencies seen under pressure, others stable

The Zambian and Ugandan currencies may stay under pressure next week while those of Kenya, Tanzania and Nigeria and likely to remain stable.
ZAMBIA - The kwacha is likely to remain under pressure against the US dollar next week due to a reduced supply of hard currency and the need to service the nation's debt.
On Thursday, commercial banks quoted the currency of Africa's second-largest copper producer at 13.1750 per dollar, down from a close of 13.0900 a week ago.
"Interim trends seem to indicate that the local unit may touch a new resistance level of $1/13.300 should the supply side remain choppy," Cavmont Bank said in a note.
Zambia's external debt rose to $10.05 billion at the end of 2018, compared with $8.74 billion a year earlier, raising fears that the country is headed for a debt crisis.
UGANDA - The Ugandan shilling is seen trading weaker against the US dollar in the coming days as some importers start to beef up their hard currency positions to prepare for extra imports to meet typically high demand in the last quarter of the year.
At 1000 GMT commercial banks quoted the shilling at 3,670/3,680, compared with last Thursday's close of 3,665/3,675.
"I anticipate a significant boost in demand from importers because in the coming weeks they will be shipping in larger volumes of goods for November-December shoppers," said an independent foreign exchange trader in the capital Kampala.
KENYA - The Kenyan shilling is seen stable against the US dollar in the coming week, with inflows from offshore investors buying government debt helping to meet month-end dollar demand amid excess liquidity in the local money market, traders said.
Commercial banks quoted the shilling at 103.75/95 per dollar, compared with 103.70/90 at last Thursday's close.
"It's still a function of liquidity and the central bank has been aggressive on the mop-up side... There is good demand from all sectors," said a senior trader from one commercial bank.
TANZANIA - Tanzania's shilling is expected to hold steady next week due to the prevailing balance in US dollar inflows and demand in the market.
On Thursday commercial banks in the capital Dar es Salaam quoted the local currency at an average of 2,292/2,302, the same levels recorded a week ago.
A senior forex trader at one commercial bank said hard currency supplies from mining, agriculture and tourism sectors were expected to match demand from energy and manufacturing firms.
"Due to that, we don't expect much change next week. The shilling will remain stable and it will be in the same levels as of this week of around 2,292/2,302," he said.
NIGERIA - Nigeria's naira is seen unchanged against the US dollar next week after the central bank stepped up its auctions of open market securities to attract foreign inflows, traders said.
The naira was quoted at 362 per dollar on Thursday, unchanged from a week earlier. The currency was quoted at 360 on exchange bureaus and at 306.35 on the official market, which is backed by the central bank. Nigeria operates a multiple currency regime.
Foreign inflows, which dried up last month due to low yields, have started to come back after the central bank increased the frequency of debt issuance. The bank launched a 300 billion naira open market (OMO) auction on Thursday.