Ringgit opens higher against greenback on improved local sentiment

 Market sentiment is boosted by Bank Negara Malaysia governor Rasheed Ghaffour’s positive remarks yesterday.

KUALA LUMPUR:

The ringgit opened higher against the US dollar today, as market sentiment was boosted by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) governor Rasheed Ghaffour’s positive remarks yesterday and expectations of a shift in the US Federal Reserve policy.

An analyst said market sentiment improved after Rasheed said that Malaysia’s economy remains well on track to grow by between 4% to 5%, likely towards the upper end of the range, with manageable inflation in 2026 despite the energy supply shock.

He said Malaysia’s economic fundamentals, reform agenda and commitment to sound economic management have enabled the government to respond when shocks occur.

Meanwhile, Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Afzanizam Rashid said the ringgit is expected to trade cautiously ahead of the US Federal Open Market Committee decision tonight, hovering around RM4.08-RM4.09 against the US dollar.

“The US Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index came in lower than expected at 90.8 points in July against consensus estimates of 92.4 points.

“Following this, the two- and 10-year US Treasury yields fell by four basis points to 4.29% and 4.61%, respectively, suggesting that the US Federal Reserve may be inclined to keep the rate steady in the near term,” he told Bernama.

Meanwhile, the ringgit traded mostly lower against a basket of major currencies at the opening today.

At 8am, the local currency rose to 4.0880/4.0940 against the greenback, compared to yesterday’s closing of 4.0885/4.0930.

It inched up against the Japanese yen to 2.4945/2.4983 from 2.4948/2.4976 at the close on Tuesday, but fell vis-à-vis the euro to 4.6538/4.6606 from 4.6429/4.6480 yesterday, and depreciated versus the British pound to 5.4305/5.4385 from 5.4287/5.4347 previously.

The ringgit also traded mixed against regional currencies.

It fell against the Singapore dollar to 3.1625/3.1675 from 3.1603/3.1640 yesterday and depreciated vis-à-vis Thai baht to 12.1775/12.2016 from 12.1494/12.1681 previously.

The local note was traded with little change against the Indonesian rupiah at 226.0/226.5 from 226.0/226.4 at Tuesday’s close and was flat vis-à-vis the Philippine peso at 6.63/6.64 yesterday. - FMT