Nairobi, June 10 -- Uncertainty over the ongoing US-Israel war with Iran placed the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) policy maneuvers on ice, with the apex bank keeping its benchmark rate unchanged at 8.75 percent for a second consecutive round.

The CBK sees the higher inflation emanating from the war as transitory, even as it assesses other macroeconomic factors, including food prices and the exchange rate, as stable. The apex bank does not expect the inflation rate to breach the 7.5 percent ceiling over the next 12 months but is banking on a near-term de-escalation in the Middle East for its softer inflation outlook to hold.

"The decision on whether to tighten or ease monetary policy is based on the data we receive during the monetary poli...