Ringgit ends lower versus US dollar
KUALA LUMPUR - The ringgit closed lower against the greenback today, weighed by a stronger US dollar due to better macro data from the United States (US) and renewed interest in safe-haven currencies, an analyst said.
28 Jul 2023 06:30pm
he ringgit closed lower against the greenback today, weighed by a stronger US dollar due to better macro data from the United States (US) and renewed interest in safe-haven currencies.
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At 6 pm, the local note weakened to 4.5535/5565 against the greenback compared with 4.5215/5260 at Thursday's close.
SPI Asset Management managing director Stephen Innes said the ringgit was blindsided by the robust US macro data, which strengthened the greenback across the board, and this would likely have lingering effects for a while despite optimism around China's stimulus.
"Unfortunately, solid US growth and the Federal Reserve's steady state policy do not support Asia's forex optimism," he told Bernama.
According to news reports, the US actual gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 2.4 per cent in the second quarter of this year, faster than expected.
Meanwhile, Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist and social finance head Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the Bank of Japan (BOJ) decided to be flexible in their Yield Curve Control (YCC) upper and lower bound in a surprise move.
"While BOJ maintained its policy rate at -0.10 per cent, a more liberal YCC seems to suggest a precursor to eventual monetary tightening," he said.
In the meantime, the local unit traded mostly higher against a basket of major currencies.
It decreased against the Japanese yen to 3.2691/2715 from 3.2285/2319 on Thursday but firmed versus the euro to 4.9966/9998 from 5.0374/0424 and improved vis-a-vis the British pound to 5.8362/8401 from 5.8685/8743 yesterday.
At the same time, the ringgit traded mixed against other Asian currencies.
The ringgit fell versus the Singapore dollar to 3.4183/4208 from 3.4163/4200 at the close on Thursday, declined vis-a-vis the Philippines' peso to 8.29/8.31 from 8.28/8.30 and flat against the Indonesian rupiah to 301.4/301.8 from 301.3/301.8 yesterday.
However, it was higher against the Thai baht to 13.2058/2218 from 13.2634/2829. - Bernama
