He said the international oil prices have also remained stable hence giving high hopes for a slight drop in March/FILE
Senior Investments Manager at PineBridge Investments Edward Gitahi predicts that the decline is likely to be attributed to the stable shilling evidenced in the last two months.
The exchange rate remained stable, according to Central Bank Kenya (CBK), fluctuating within a narrower range of between Sh85 and Sh87.50 for the US dollar in January and February this year, indicating what CBK termed as return of confidence in the market.
“You remember when we started the year, many had fears that the shilling may drop in value like it happened sometimes back, especially due to the heightened political campaigns and the elections that have just ended. But instead we have seen the shilling even gain. This is usually very positive, not only to oil importation, but also to other imported commodities,” Gitahi told Capital FM Business.
He said the international oil prices have also remained stable hence giving high hopes for a slight drop in March.
“In any case, we are likely to see the commission stick to the current prices and not go up,” Gitahi said.
On Tuesday, however, the Central Bank’s Monitory Policy Committee said that the international oil prices are on the rise but assured of less impact if the exchange rates and lending rates remain stable.
In the last months review, a litre of super petrol went up by Sh1.97, kerosene Sh2.07 and Sh2.21 for a litre of diesel.
The commission attributed the rise to increased importation costs of crude oil in the month of January.
