The ringgit opened lower versus the US dollar but traded higher against the yen, euro, and pound amid geopolitical risks and US inflation data.
KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit opened lower against the US dollar on Wednesday but traded higher against other major currencies.
At 9.01 am, the local currency slipped to 4.0600/0680 against the greenback from Tuesday’s close of 4.0555/0600.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the US dollar index rose 0.29% to 99.152 points amid heightened geopolitical risk.
“This suggests potential interference from the US is increasingly likely,” he told Bernama.
He noted that US macroeconomic data showed the headline inflation rate for December was sustained at 2.7%.
The core inflation rate moderated to 2.6% but remains above the US Federal Reserve’s 2% target.
“The US Fed is likely to keep the benchmark rate steady in the upcoming Federal Open Market Committee later this month,” he said.
Afzanizam added that this might fuel further tension between the Fed and the Trump administration.
At the opening, the ringgit traded higher against a basket of major currencies.
It appreciated versus the Japanese yen to 2.5499/5551 from 2.5521/5551 at Tuesday’s close.
The local note strengthened vis-a-vis the euro to 4.7267/7360 from 4.7344/7396.
It also edged up against the British pound to 5.4506/4613 from 5.4676/4737 previously.
However, the ringgit was mixed against its ASEAN peers.
It was higher versus the Singapore dollar at 3.1495/1562 from 3.1511/1549.
The ringgit gained vis-a-vis the Thai baht to 12.8697/9008 from 12.8840/12.9036.
It edged down against the Indonesian rupiah to 240.5/241.1 from 240.3/240.6.
The local note declined against the Philippine peso to 6.84/6.86 from 6.83/6.84 previously.
