THE ringgit opened marginally stronger against the US dollar on Wednesday, supported by a softer greenback following dovish signals from the US Federal Reserve.
At 8.01am, the Malaysian currency stood at 4.2220/2365 against the greenback, an improvement from Tuesday’s close of 4.2305/2355.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd Chief Economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the US Dollar Index (DXY) had eased by 0.20 per cent to 99.064 points after the Fed chairman flagged rising risks in the US labour market.
This has strengthened market expectations that the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) may consider cutting interest rates at its upcoming meeting.
“The latest International Monetary Fund forecast shows the global economy is expected to grow 3.2 per cent in 2025, an upward revision from its July projection,” Bernama reported Afzanizam saying.
He also noted that progress in ongoing trade negotiations between the United States and major economies is contributing to increased policy clarity compared to earlier in the year, when markets were unsettled by trade tensions.
Against this backdrop, he said the ringgit could see moderate gains today, with the USD/MYR pair likely to trade between RM4.22 and RM4.23.
Despite the firmer showing against the US dollar, the ringgit weakened against a number of other major currencies.
It slipped to 4.8988/9156 versus the euro (from 4.8879/8937 at Tuesday’s close), 5.6241/6434 against the British pound (from 5.6118/6184), and 2.7840/7938 versus the Japanese yen (from 2.7808/7843).
The ringgit also eased against several regional currencies, falling to 12.9358/9866 against the Thai baht (from 12.8975/9182), and to 3.2514/2631 against the Singapore dollar (from 3.2512/2553).
It also edged lower against the Indonesian rupiah at 254.2/255.2 (from 254.8/255.2), and was little changed against the Philippine peso at 7.25/7.28 (from 7.26/7.27). - October 15, 2025
