KUALA LUMPUR – The ringgit opened marginally higher versus the greenback for the second consecutive day amid tepid market sentiment, a dealer said.
At 9am, the local currency improved to 4.6350/6395 against the greenback from yesterday’s closing of 4.6380/6425.
ActivTrades trader Dyogenes Rodrigues Diniz said that investors continued to flee from risky assets such as stocks and other currencies and sought refuge in the safe haven US dollar and United States government bonds.
He noted that the foreign exchange market’s performance was heavily influenced by the release of US employment data and fast-rising inflation in Germany.
“In the US, the lower-than-expected initial jobless claims showed that the labour market is strong, as it is running at levels similar to those seen before the (Covid-19) pandemic.
“A solid job market leaves room for the US Federal Reserve for further financial tightening through interest rate hikes,” he said in a note.
Diniz added that the inflation rate in Germany is at its highest level in more than 50 years, stoking concerns about the European Union’s economy.
Meanwhile, the ringgit traded easier against a basket of major currencies.
It fell vis-a-vis the euro to 4.5544/5588 from yesterday’s 4.4951/4995, slipped against the British pound to 5.1736/1786 from 5.0392/0441 yesterday, and declined versus the Singapore dollar to 3.2358/2394 from 3.2228/2264.
However, the local note inched up against the Japanese yen at 3.2034/2067 from 3.2050/2084 at yesterday’s closing.
Meanwhile, the weak market sentiment took a toll on Bursa Malaysia at midday today, with the benchmark index ending the morning trading session almost flat.
At 12.30pm, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI added 0.44 of-a-point to 1,397.94 from yesterday’s close of 1,397.50.
The benchmark index, which opened 2.21 points easier at 1,395.29, moved between 1,390.41 and 1,398.33 throughout the session.
On the broader market, decliners outpaced advancers 503 to 210, while 355 counters were unchanged, 1,315 untraded and 37 others suspended.
Turnover stood at 929.54 million units worth RM678.51 million.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank and IHH Healthcare added 2 sen each to RM8.58 and RM5.94, respectively, while Public Bank and Petronas Chemicals both rose by 1 sen to RM4.21 and RM8.40, respectively.
CIMB was flat at RM5.15, and TNB dipped 13 sen to RM8.12.
Of the actives, Top Glove increased 1.5 sen to 60 sen, Green Ocean edged up 0.5 sen to 1.5 sen, PT Resources and Widad were flat at 43.5 sen and 36 sen, respectively, while Harvest Miracle declined 1.5 sen to 10.5 sen and Bina Puri edged down 0.5 sen to 3 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index decreased 7.93 points to 9,973.51, the FBM 70 dwindled 31.62 points to 12,123.96, and the FBMT 100 Index gave up 3.74 points to 9,731.37.
The FBM Emas Shariah Index went down 21.29 points to 10,020.56, and the FBM ACE fell 14.86 points to 4,645.19.
Sector-wise, the energy index lessened 6.88 points to 664.62, the plantation index weakened 7.57 points to 6,496.93, the financial services index advanced 20.87 points to 15,903.21, and the industrial products and services index inched down 0.12 of-a-point to 169.85. – Bernama, September 30, 2022
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