KUALA LUMPUR – The ringgit rebounded to open higher against the US dollar ahead of the release of the US inflation report later today.
At 9am, the ringgit edged up to 4.7620/7660 against the greenback compared with yesterday’s close of 4.7690/7730.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the US dollar index gained 0.11% to 103.942 points ahead of the release of the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) inflation report tonight.
“Should the PCE report (come out) higher than expected, it would bolster the value of the ringgit,” he said.
Afzanizam added that market participants also continued to remain bullish on the US dollar as the anticipation for a rate cut in the near-term is waning.
He said the ringgit is in an oversold condition, while Bank Negara Malaysia has indicated that the local unit is undervalued.
“Clearly, there is an upside risk for the ringgit to appreciate, but at the moment, the markets are too fixated on the US Federal Reserve’s decision on rates.
“As such, the ringgit against the US dollar is expected to maintain its narrow range of 4.76 to 4.77,” he said.
Meanwhile, the ringgit was traded lower against a basket of major currencies, except against the Japanese yen, whereby it improved to 3.1633/1668 from 3.1635/1664 at yesterday’s close.
The local currency fell against the British pound to 6.0304/0368 from 6.0199/0250 yesterday and slipped versus the euro to 5.1612/1666 from 5.1510/1553 previously.
The ringgit also performed better against other Asean currencies.
It edged up versus the Thai baht to 13.2140/2342 from yesterday’s close of 13.2252/2421 and was up against the Singapore dollar at 3.5386/5429 compared to 3.5405/5437 previously.
The local note also gained versus the Philippine peso to 8.46/8.48 from 8.47/8.49 yesterday and inched up vis-a-vis the Indonesian rupiah to 303.4/303.9 from 303.8/304.3. – February 29, 2024