THE ringgit opened stronger against the US dollar on Friday, buoyed by continued weakness in the US Dollar Index (DXY), which remains below the 100-point mark amid sustained uncertainty over US-China trade relations.
At 8am, the local unit appreciated to 4.3995/4150 against the greenback, compared with Thursday’s close of 4.4050/4095.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid noted that the ringgit had risen by 0.08 per cent to RM4.4073 against the US dollar on Thursday, in tandem with the softer DXY.
“Given the current weakness in the greenback, the US dollar-ringgit pair is expected to remain around the RM4.40 level,” he told Bernama.
He added that the latest US initial jobless claims data had declined to 215,000 last week, signalling continued strength in the US labour market despite ongoing economic uncertainties.
Despite its gains against the US dollar, the ringgit traded mostly lower against a basket of major currencies.
It weakened against the Japanese yen to 3.0893/1019 from 3.0849/0883, and slipped vis-à-vis the British pound to 5.8368/8574 from 5.8331/8391. However, it posted a slight gain against the euro, trading at 5.0027/0203 from 5.0102/0154.
The local currency performed better against most ASEAN counterparts.
It edged up against the Singapore dollar to 3.3548/3705 from 3.3562/3601, and strengthened against the Thai baht to 13.1651/2491 from 13.2211/2417.
It also remained firm versus the Indonesian rupiah at 261.3/262.4 from 261.6/262.0 and gained slightly against the Philippine peso at 7.76/7.80 compared to 7.77/7.79. – April 18, 2025
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