Nairobi, June 15 -- Investors demanded a return of up to nine percent on Treasury bills in the latest auction despite the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) holding its base rate at 8.75 percent, to signal that it expects inflation to moderate in the near term.

T-bill rates across the three tenors have risen by between 0.7 and 1.3 percentage points as investors seek higher compensation to cover rising inflation caused by the three-month war in Iran.

In the latest sale last Thursday, the 91-day T-bill rate rose to 8.7 percent from 8.55 percent, the 182-day from 6.52 percent to 8.6 percent and the 364-day rate from 8.76 percent to 8.87 percent. Investors sought an average of 8.76 percent on the 91 and 182-day papers, and 9.1 percent on the one-y...