Ringgit ends lower against greenback

KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit continued to close lower against the US dollar today on better demand for the greenback, after the US Federal Reserve surprised markets by maintaining a hawkish stance on the economy.
At 6pm, the local note was quoted at 4.3350/3400 against the greenback from 4.3260/3290 yesterday. A dealer said market sentiment towards the US dollar continued to be boosted by the Federal Reserve's confidence that the slowdown in the economy was temporary.
"Heightened expectations over the Federal Reserve raising US rates further have outweighed news on better-than-expected exports data for Malaysia," he added.
The Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) today announced that the country's exports surged to a record high in March, up 24 per cent from a year earlier to RM82.63 billion, underpinned by higher demand for manufactured goods, which accounted for 81 per cent of total exports.
At close, the ringgit traded mostly lower against most major currencies.
It rose against the Singapore dollar to 3.0856/0896 from 3.0940/0981 but declined against the Japanese yen to 3.8616/8671 from 3.8300/8337 yesterday.
The ringgit fell against the British pound to 5.6052/6129 from 5.5792/5844 and was lower against the euro at 4.7490/7562 from 4.7292/7338 on Thursday. — Bernama