The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics’ second-quarter report for 2018 indicates that Kenyans working in the diaspora remitted Sh74.7 billion compared to Sh47.6 billion in the same period last year. In addition, gross official reserves stood at Sh904.8 billion at the end of June 2018 compared to Sh889.7 billion at the end of June 2017. During the period under review, the overall balance of payments posted a deficit of Sh33.6 billion.
The net use up of the foreign exchange reserves was Sh41.1 billion in the quarter while financial account net inflows reduced to Sh18.8 billion in the second quarter of 2017. This was because of” decreased inflows coupled with increased debt securities outflows mainly in portfolio investments and other investments categories.”
Public External Debt
Public and publicly external debt rose from Sh2,294.7 billion at end of June 2017 to Sh, 560.2 billion at end of June 2018. The increase was attributed to the increased uptake of commercial bank loans which stood at Sh9064 billion at the end of the second quarter of 2018.
Bilateral debt stood at Sh816.1 billion while multilateral debt stood at Sh820.9 billion. In addition, suppliers credit was Sh16.7 billion at the end of the quarter under review.
Imports and Exports
During the quarter, imports rose 8.8 per cent to Sh460.6 billion from Sh423.5 billion in the second quarter of 2017. On the other hand, total exports surged by 6.2 per cent to Sh158.2 billion in the same period.
Foreign exchange earnings from domestic exports grew 5.4 per cent to Sh139.6 billion from Sh132.4 billion. The growth was propelled by the increase in horticultural exports by 11.7 per cent, coffee at 4.6 per cent, and apparel and clothing accessories at 13.3 per cent.
Tea exports fell by 5.1 per cent while exports of titanium ores and concentrates dropped by 5.0 per cent. Tea exports declined because of lower prices in the international market while exports of titanium ores and concentrates was affected by reduced quantities.
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