Ringgit strengthens against greenback in early trade

KUALA LUMPUR,. The ringgit opened higher against the US dollar today on renewed demand for the local currency in tandem with the rebound on the equity market, said an analyst.

At 9.00am, the local note rose to 4.4700/4750 against the US dollar from last Friday’s close of 4.4765/4780.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd head of economics, market analysis, and social finance Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said from a technical standpoint, the ringgit is already in an oversold position against the US dollar, suggesting possible appreciation in the immediate term.

The US non-farm payroll (NFP) data on Friday and Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) monetary policy committee meeting on Thursday are among the key events this week, he informed.

“We believe BNM is expected to keep the overnight policy rates (OPR) unchanged as the central bank may need to observe the effects of last year’s hikes.

“Perhaps, we could have more (clarity) once BNM announces its annual report.

“For now, we think the ringgit will continue to move in a tight range of around RM4.47 to RM4.48 against the greenback as concerns over a hawkish US Federal Reserve (Fed) will continue to dictate the market direction,” he told Bernama.

The ringgit traded lower against a basket of major currencies.

The local unit depreciated against the euro to 4.7507/7560 from 4.7487/7503 last Friday and slipped against the Japanese yen to 3.2904/2943 from 3.2877/2890.

It also fell against the British pound to 5.3770/3830 from 5.3642/3660 previously and weakened vis-a-vis the euro to 4.7507/7560 from 4.7487/7503.

However, the local note traded mostly higher against Asean currencies.

It gained versus the Singapore dollar to 3.3229/3271 from 3.3255/3269 last Friday and improved against the Philippine peso at 8.15/8.17 from 8.16/8.17.

The local currency also increased against the Indonesian rupiah at 291.9/292.4 from 292.30/292.60 previously but eased vis-a-vis the Thai baht to 12.9183/9406 from 12.8998/9105. — Bernama