THE ringgit opened stronger against the US dollar on Thursday morning, lifted by fresh buying sentiment and concerns over a partial US government shutdown — the first in nearly seven years.
At 8.02am, the ringgit stood at 4.2000/2100 against the greenback, appreciating from Wednesday’s close of 4.2045/2095.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd’s chief economist, Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid, said the shutdown had disrupted federal services, including the release of key economic data, adding further pressure on the dollar.
“The key question is how quickly the impasse between Republicans and Democrats over spending programmes and concessions can be resolved,” he told Bernama.
“In the meantime, the shutdown is dollar-negative. The dollar-ringgit could make another attempt to pierce the RM4.20 psychological level today,” he said.
The local note also made gains against several major currencies. It rose to 4.9279/9396 against the euro from 4.9327/9386 on Wednesday, and edged up to 5.6603/6738 against the British pound from 5.6605/6672. Against the Japanese yen, it firmed to 2.8542/8612 from 2.8561/8597.
Regionally, the ringgit strengthened to 3.2611/2694 against the Singapore dollar from 3.2623/2665, and to 12.9478/9870 versus the Thai baht from 12.9929/13.0128.
It also appreciated against the Philippine peso at 7.22/7.24 from 7.23/7.24 and inched higher against the Indonesian rupiah at 252.4/253.2 from 252.7/253.1. - October 2, 2025
