Ugandan central bank to hold emergency meeting as shilling falls sharply

Uganda's central bank said it would hold an emergency Monetary Policy Committee meeting on Wednesday.

Uganda's shilling has been falling sharply against the dollar since August.

The shilling has recorded repeated all-time lows this month and is down more than 11% against the dollar so far this year.

The central bank has not intervened directly in the market to slow the depreciation, saying it does not target a specific exchange rate but will use a range of tools to manage excess volatility.

The East African's country reserves rose to $6.7 billion in the 12 months to June, from $4.3 billion in the previous period, the bank said on Monday

The new reserves level is equivalent to 3.7 months of future import cover, the bank said, but still below its target cover of four months .

The higher reserves could potentially help cushion the shilling.