KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 8): The ringgit opened marginally higher against the US dollar on Wednesday, as markets continued to assess whether the Federal Reserve (Fed) would pivot following the latest jobs market report last week, said an analyst.
At 9.08am, the ringgit had risen to 4.6640/6690 versus the greenback, from Tuesday’s closing rate of 4.6675/6725.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the markets seemed to be reassessing economic conditions after the non-farm payroll euphoria last week.
“Investors assessed Fed official Neel Kashkari’s hawkish stance that the country has proven its resilience, despite the sharp increase in interest rates, that there’s still more work to be done to keep the inflation rate lower,” he told Bernama.
He added that the US dollar index continued to be well supported at 105.542 points, although the US 10-year Treasury yield fell by nine basis points to close at 4.58% on Tuesday.
Hence, Mohd Afzanizam expects the US dollar-ringgit exchange rate to remain steady around the prevailing level.
Meanwhile, the ringgit traded higher versus a basket of major currencies, but was flat against the euro at 4.9863/9916.
It increased against the Japanese yen to 3.0986/1021 from 3.1026/1061 at Tuesday’s close, and appreciated vis-a-vis the British pound to 5.7307/7368 from 5.7415/7476.
The local note was traded mixed against other ASEAN currencies.
It edged up against the Singapore dollar to 3.4426/4465 from 3.4444/4483 on Tuesday, and inch up against the Indonesian rupiah to 298.2/298.7 from 298.4/298.9 previously.
However, the ringgit was down against the Thai baht to 13.1391/1595 from 13.1154/1346 on Tuesday. It was flat against the Philippine peso at 8.31/8.33.
Tags: Ringgit opens marginally higher dollar
