KUALA LUMPUR, July 14 — The ringgit opened slightly higher against the US dollar on Tuesday amid uncertainty surrounding the Strait of Hormuz, which has pushed global crude oil prices higher, an analyst said.
At 8 am, the local currency edged up to 4.0675/0730 against the greenback from 4.0680/0730 at yesterday’s close.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said developments in the Strait of Hormuz remain the key focus, with benchmark crude prices rising sharply.
He noted that West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Brent crude prices had climbed 9.42 per cent and 9.35 per cent to US$78.14 and US$83.12 per barrel, respectively.
Meanwhile, the yields on two- and 10-year US Treasury bonds rose by eight and six basis points to 4.28 per cent and 4.62 per cent, respectively, amid expectations that inflation will continue to trend higher, reinforcing the view that the US Federal Reserve could raise interest rates this year.
“Such a premise has bolstered the US dollar index (DXY) to 101.276 points.
“Against such a backdrop, emerging market currencies, including the ringgit, are expected to remain volatile in the near term. As such, the ringgit is likely to trade between 4.07 and 4.10 against the US dollar today,” he told Bernama.
At the opening, the ringgit traded higher against a basket of major currencies.
It strengthened against the Japanese yen to 2.5040/5075 from 2.5110/5142 at yesterday’s close, appreciated against the British pound to 5.4297/4370 from 5.4475/4542, and rose against the euro to 4.6296/6359 from 4.6501/6558 previously.
The ringgit traded mixed against ASEAN currencies.
It gained against the Singapore dollar to 3.1417/1464 from 3.1489/1530 at yesterday’s close and strengthened against the Thai baht to 12.1396/1618 from 12.1953/2151 previously.
However, the local currency was unchanged against the Indonesian rupiah at 224.6/225.0 and remained flat against the Philippine peso at 6.60/6.62.
