KUALA LUMPUR, May 6 — The ringgit extended gains, opening stronger against the US dollar today, supported by ongoing positive sentiment towards the local currency, said an analyst.
At 8am, the ringgit rose to 4.1835/2035 against the greenback, from yesterday’s close of 4.1990/2035.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said there is speculation that potential trade deals will be achieved as the United States’ tariff shocks are likely to severely dent American growth.
“On that note, we expect the ringgit to remain strong against the US dollar today,” he said.
He noted that the US Dollar Index continues to linger below the 100-point level at 99.831, despite a better-than-expected US Institute for Supply Management Index reading for the services sector, which rose to 51.6 points in April (consensus: 50.2 points).
Meanwhile, market sentiment was also supported by Malaysia’s Special parliamentary session on US tariffs held yesterday, during which the government expressed its readiness to mitigate the impact of tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump.
The ringgit traded higher against a basket of major currencies.
It rose versus the Japanese yen to 2.9111/9252 from 2.9192/9225 at yesterday’s close, strengthened vis-a-vis the euro to 4.7320/7546 from 4.7629/7680 previously, and gained against the British pound to 5.5595/5860 from 5.5868/5928.
Similarly, the ringgit performed better against its Asean peers.
It was higher versus the Singapore dollar at 3.2410/2573 from yesterday’s close of 3.2644/2682 and gained vis-a-vis the Thai baht to 12.6942/7692 from 12.7497/7747.
The local note also improved against the Philippine peso to 7.50/7.54 from 7.53/7.54 yesterday and appreciated versus the Indonesian rupiah to 254.1/255.5 from 255.1/255.5.
— Bernama
