KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit finished trading marginally higher against the US dollar after a stronger performance in the morning that tapered off later in the day.
At 6pm, the local currency traded at 4.4350/4.4395 versus the greenback from 4.4385/4.4435 at Wednesday’s close.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Afzanizam Rashid said Malaysia’s latest Consumer Price Index print showed inflation rate had gradually eased to 3.4% in March after sustaining at 3.7% in the past two months.
“Despite that, the inflation rate still lingers on the high side. While another 25-basis points hike in the overnight policy rate is still a plausible scenario, the window of opportunity seems to be narrowing in light of the challenging global economic outlook,” he told Bernama.
Meanwhile, the ringgit traded easier against a basket of major currencies.
It slipped vis-a-vis the euro to 4.8616/4.8666 from 4.8508/4.8563 on Wednesday, inched down against the Japanese yen to 3.2923/3.2958 from 3.2919/3.2959 at yesterday’s close, and it was easier versus the British pound at 5.5127/5.5183 from 5.5100/5.5162 yesterday.
The local currency also traded easier against Asean currencies.
The local currency weakened against the Indonesian rupiah at 296.4/297.1 from 296.1/296.8 on Wednesday, depreciated versus the Thai baht to 12.8947/12.9134 from 12.8719/12.8917, fell against the Philippine peso at 7.91/7.93 from 7.89/7.91 and went down against the Singapore dollar at 3.3256/3.3292 from 3.3190/3.3230 yesterday.
Bursa Malaysia Bhd and its subsidiaries will be closed on Friday, April 21, 2023, and Monday, April 24, 2023, in conjunction with the additional Hari Raya Aidilfitri holiday.
The bourse will resume trading on Tuesday, April 25, 2023. - FMT
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