THE ringgit continued its upward momentum in early trading on Tuesday, rising against the US dollar on the back of increased buying interest in the local currency and a decline in the US Dollar Index (DXY).
At 8am, the ringgit appreciated to 4.3585/3665 against the greenback from Monday’s close of 4.3615/3665.
Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid, Chief Economist at Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd, said the DXY fell by 0.46 per cent to 99.010 points, following disruptions to US businesses due to American import tariffs.
“The ringgit is expected to remain positive, albeit with a tendency towards a narrow trading range,” he told Bernama.
“At the moment, USD/MYR is quite close to the existing support level of 4.3634, and if the pair breaks through this level, the next support would be at 4.2607,” he added.
Mohd Afzanizam noted that the ringgit had performed strongly so far, gaining 0.22 per cent against the US dollar to 4.3640 as of Monday.
Meanwhile, other Asian currencies showed mixed performances on Monday, with Thailand’s baht and Indonesia’s rupiah weakening by 0.02 per cent and 0.15 per cent respectively against the US dollar.
The South Korean won and Indian rupee, on the other hand, rose by 0.36 per cent and 0.49 per cent respectively.
Globally, calls for a US interest rate cut have intensified, as the yield on the two-year US Treasury note fell by five basis points to 3.69 per cent.
However, in early Tuesday trade, the ringgit traded lower against several major currencies.
It weakened against the Japanese yen to 3.0657/0718 from Monday’s close of 3.0406/0443, and eased against the euro to 4.9722/9813 from 4.9507/9564.
The local unit also fell against the British pound, trading at 5.8552/8660 compared with 5.8195/8262 previously.
In the ASEAN region, the ringgit traded slightly lower or flat against several currencies.
It slipped against the Singapore dollar to 3.3284/3350 from 3.3198/3238, and declined against the Thai baht to 13.0619/0945 from 12.9517/9743.
The ringgit was almost unchanged against the Philippine peso at 7.72/7.74 from 7.73/7.74 and held steady versus the Indonesian rupiah at 258.5/259.1 from 258.7/259.1. - April 29, 2025
