The Kenyan shilling weakened slightly against the US dollar during the week ending March 12, even as money sent home by Kenyans living abroad increased in February.
According to the latest bulletin from the Central Bank of Kenya, the shilling traded at Ksh129.30 per dollar on March 12, compared to Ksh129.20 recorded on March 5.
Although the change was small, it shows the currency has been slowly slipping in recent weeks. On average, the shilling traded at about Ksh129.23 against the dollar between March 6 and March 12.
Despite the slight drop, the local currency has managed to remain below the Ksh130 mark for about 19 months.
At the same time, Kenya received Ksh53.4 billion (USD 412.7 million) in diaspora remittances in February 2026. This was an increase of about Ksh3.9 billion, or roughly 8 per cent, compared to the Ksh49.4 billion received in February last year.
The increase is significant because it ended a three-month period when remittances had been falling compared to the previous year. Inflows had dropped in November, December and January before rising again in February.
However, when compared to January this year, the February figure was slightly lower. Remittances in January stood at Ksh55.3 billion, meaning February’s inflows dropped by about Ksh1.9 billion.
Even so, money sent home by Kenyans abroad remains one of the country’s most important sources of foreign exchange.
“Remittance inflows remain a key source of foreign exchange earnings and continue to support the balance of payments,” the Central Bank said.
Meanwhile, Kenya’s foreign exchange reserves remained stable. The central bank reported that reserves stood at about Ksh1.8 trillion (USD 14.4 billion) as of March 12. This is enough to cover about 6.2 months of imports, which is above the required minimum level.
Globally, markets remained tense during the week due to rising geopolitical tensions, including the conflict between Israel and Iran, which has affected trade and pushed investors toward safer currencies.
Oil prices also rose during the same period. The price of Murban crude oil increased to about USD 92 per barrel, up from around USD 76 a week earlier, adding more pressure on global markets.