KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 22 — The ringgit closed marginally higher against the United States dollar today, trading within a narrow range as investors remained cautious ahead of key geopolitical developments this week.
At 6pm, the ringgit climbed to 4.0730/0775 against the greenback from yesterday’s close of 4.0755/4.0800.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the ringgit continued to trade cautiously against the greenback as investors monitored geopolitical developments including the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and an upcoming meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping this week.
“Following the recent interest rate hikes by the European Central Bank (ECB), the US Federal Reserve (Fed) and the Bank of Japan (BOJ), markets appeared to have come to terms with the likelihood that monetary policy would remain tight until inflation begins to turn toward the two per cent target,” he told Bernama, referring to the Fed target.
Afzanizam also noted that Brent crude has remained above US$100 per barrel, reflecting the fragility of the geopolitical situation.
“Earlier, the resumption of oil flows from Saudi Arabia via the Strait of Hormuz provided the much-needed boost to market optimism that oil shortages could be avoided. In reality, there is still a long way to go,” he said.
At the close, the ringgit traded mostly higher against a basket of major currencies.
It gained against the euro to 4.6705/6757 from 4.6783/6834 at yesterday’s close and advanced vis-à-vis the British pound to 5.4452/4512 from 5.4542/4603. However, it weakened against the Japanese yen to 2.5958/5988 from 2.5916/5946 previously.
The local note traded mixed against its ASEAN peers.
It dipped against the Singapore dollar to 3.1955/1993 from 3.1950/1987 at yesterday’s close and declined versus the Thai baht to 12.2847/3035 from 12.2450/2637.
However, the ringgit strengthened against the Indonesian rupiah to 227.7/228.0 from 228.3/228.6 and remained unchanged against the Philippine peso at 6.49/6.50.
