KUALA LUMPUR, July 23 — The ringgit ended higher against the United States (US) dollar today on renewed buying interest ahead of Malaysia’s consumer price index (CPI) report.
The CPI report is scheduled to be released by the Department of Statistics Malaysia tomorrow.
At 6pm, the ringgit increased by 85 basis points to 4.6720/6745 versus the US dollar from Monday’s closing of 4.6805/6835.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said tomorrow’s CPI print will be closely scrutinised by the investing community in light of the recent diesel subsidy rationalisation implementation, he said.
“Bank Negara Malaysia is likely to keep its monetary policy steady as it foresaw the balance of risks is skewed on the upside. This seems to be in contrast with developed countries’ monetary policies, as some of them have begun cutting down their benchmark interest rate.
“On that score, the narrowing of interest rate differentials with the developed economies would help bolster the value of the ringgit this year,” he told Bernama.
The ringgit remains resilient despite the strengthening greenback due to expectations of a United States Federal Reserve rate cut.
Afzanizam said the ringgit appears to have gained some support today, especially in the morning session, when the USD-MYR hit a low of RM4.6708 before gradually softening to RM4.6745 later in the day.
The latest political development in the US seems to be dollar-positive as Donald Trump may not easily win the presidential race in November.
Meanwhile, the local note was mostly traded firmer against a basket of major currencies.
At Monday's close, the ringgit retreated versus the Japanese yen to 2.9958/9976 from 2.9869/9892. It appreciated against the British pound to 6.0320/0352 from 6.0514/0553 and increased vis-à-vis the euro to 5.0771/0798 from 5.0971/1003 previously.
The ringgit was higher against Asean currencies, except for the Thai baht.
At yesterday's close, it improved against the Philippine peso to 7.99/8.00 from 8.01/8.03, inched up against the Indonesian rupiah to 288.1/288.4 from 288.5/288.8, and increased against the Singapore dollar to 3.4731/3752 from 3.4804/4829.
However, the local currency depreciated vis-à-vis the Thai baht to 12.9004/9116 from 12.8975/9118 previously.
— Bernama
