KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit opened flat against the US dollar on Wednesday, amid cautious market sentiments ahead of the United States (US) Federal Reserve (Fed) chair, Jerome Powell’s Jackson Hole speech this Friday.
At 8 am, the local note stood at 4.2215/2420 from yesterday’s close of 4.2215/2255.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the US Dollar Index (DXY) fluctuated from a low of 97.95 to a high of 98.29 points, with traders adopting a cautious stance ahead of Powell’s speech.
“Market participants are searching for clues on the Fed’s stance on monetary policy and how it will shape their decision in the upcoming Federal Open Market Committee meeting on Sept 16-17.
“Markets are pricing higher odds for a 25 basis points (bps) cut. As such, the two- and 10-year US Treasury yield slid by two bps and four bps to close at 3.75 per cent and 4.30 per cent, respectively,“ he told Bernama.
The Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium will be held on Aug 21-23, with the theme of “Labour Markets in Transition: Demographics, Productivity and Macroeconomic Policy”.
Yesterday, the ringgit closed at RM4.2235, easing by 0.04 per cent versus the greenback.
As such, Mohd Afzanizam expects the ringgit to maintain its trajectory between RM4.22 and RM4.23 today.
The ringgit opened higher against a basket of major currencies, with the exception of the Japanese yen, where it eased to 2.8578/8718 from Tuesday’s close of 2.8572/8601.
It gained against the British pound to 5.6923/7199 from 5.7066/7120 yesterday and rose vis-à-vis the euro to 4.9147/9385 from 4.9307/9354 previously.
At the same time, the local note traded mixed against other ASEAN currencies.
It gained versus the Singapore dollar to 3.2844/3007 from 3.2901/2935 at Tuesday’s close and strengthened against the Thai baht to 12.9498/13.0195 from 12.9848/13.0027 yesterday.
The ringgit was flat vis-à-vis the Philippines’ peso at 7.39/7.43 from yesterday’s 7.39/7.40, as well as against the Indonesian rupiah, where it stood at 259.8/261.2 from 259.8/260.2 on Tuesday. - Bernama
