KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit opened lower against the US dollar due to a lack of buying interest, as market uncertainty persists following US President Donald Trump’s global reciprocal tariffs.
At 8.09 am, the ringgit depreciated to 4.4485/4765 against the greenback from last Friday’s close of 4.4335/4400.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said currency markets are likely to remain volatile with weak sentiment following the Trump administration’s sweeping tariff announcement last week.
He said S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures fell 4.57 per cent and 5.33 per cent on Friday, suggesting that investors are bearish on risky assets.
“On that note, the ringgit is expected to trade cautiously, as demand for safe haven currency such as the US dollar would continue to dominate trading.
“Currency markets are wary over the associated risk of recession in the US as tariffs would raise the cost of doing business and would result in the destruction of US demand,” he told Bernama.
Mohd Afzanizam said thus far, the US Federal Reserve (Fed) has remained calm.
He noted that the US interest rate futures indicate a more than 100 per cent probability of Fed Fund Rate cuts in June and July’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting. Benchmark rates could reach 3.50 per cent from the current 4.25 per cent to 4.50 per cent, suggesting a 100 basis points cut.
The ringgit traded mostly lower against major currencies.
It went down against the Japanese yen to 3.0582/0779 from 3.0294/0340 and weakened against the euro to 4.8773/9080 from 4.8706/8778 but appreciated against the British pound to 5.7399/7760 from 5.7591/7676 at last Friday’s close.
The local note was mixed against ASEAN currencies.
It increased against the Thai baht to 12.8376/9274 from 12.9589/9847 and improved against the Singapore dollar to 3.3035/3248 from 3.3153/3204 previously.
It fell against the Indonesian rupiah at 267.1/268.9 from 266.2/266.7 and slid against the Philippine peso at 7.82/7.88 from 7.80/7.782.
