The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) held its Central Bank Rate at 8.75%, the fourth consecutive hold, according to streamlinefeed.co.ke. The decision was announced on 7 October 2026 after a meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC).
Inflation was 6.8% in September, up from 6.6% in August and within the 2.5% to 7.5% target range, Reuters-style reporting aside, riotimesonline.com reported. Commercial bank lending to the private sector grew 10.6% in September, up from 10.3% in August, according to the bank.
The CBK raised its 2026 GDP growth forecast to 5.0% from 4.9%, streamlinefeed.co.ke reported. The bank quoted the shilling at 129.89 per US dollar on the day of the decision, according to riotimesonline.com.
The committee named energy prices as the main external risk and gave no clear signal on whether its next move would be a cut or a rise, riotimesonline.com reported. The Kenya Bankers Association, the lenders' lobby group, had urged a hold before the meeting.
The CBK last cut rates on 10 February, according to riotimesonline.com. The outlet also reported that average commercial lending rates were about 14.3% in August, well above the benchmark.
The CBK is also monitoring implementation of the risk-based pricing model, which requires banks to price loans according to the specific risk profile of the borrower rather than applying a uniform spread, streamlinefeed.co.ke reported.
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Sources: streamlinefeed.co.ke, riotimesonline.com