KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 23 — The ringgit strengthened against the US dollar at the opening today, as geopolitical tensions between Russia and Ukraine escalate, indicating that the current situation is highly vulnerable, adding to the extent of uncertainty in the foreign exchange market and commodities market in particular.
At 9 am, the local currency rose to 4.1815/1845 versus the greenback from Tuesday’s close of 4.1845/1855.
Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd chief economist Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the ringgit and dollar relationship may settle for a narrow margin of around RM4.18 today as traders reassess the global interest rate hike anticipation.
"There appears to be a possibility that central banks around the world will reconsider the timing of tightening their policy stance in light of the tectonic shift in geopolitical risk in Eastern Europe," he told Bernama.
Meanwhile, the ringgit was traded mostly lower against a basket of other major currencies.
It rose versus the yen to 3.6355/6384 from 3.6444/6456 yesterday but fell against the Singapore dollar to 3.1087/1112 from 3.1065/1077.
The local currency also inched down vis-a-vis the British pound to 5.6852/6892 from 5.6826/6839 on Tuesday and declined against the euro to 4.7389/7423 from 4.7373/7384.
— Bernama
