Ringgit opens marginally lower amid mixed global cues

The ringgit opened marginally lower against the US dollar on Wednesday, with the local note still trading within a narrow trading range amid mixed global market cues.

At 8am, the ringgit eased slightly to 4.0840/4.0885 against the US dollar from Tuesday’s close of 4.0835/4.0880.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Afzanizam Rashid said the 0.33% decline in the US Dollar Index (DXY) to 101.833 points, together with Brent crude prices hovering around US$100 per barrel, provided some support for the ringgit.

He said global equities were also positive on optimism over corporate earnings, reflecting stronger sentiment in financial markets “On that note, improved risk appetite among traders is providing support to the ringgit today,” he added.

The ringgit also traded mostly lower against major currencies at the opening.

It fell against the British pound to 5.4174/5.4234 from 5.4066/5.4125 at Tuesday’s close and dipped against the euro to 4.5949/4.6000 from 4.5907/4.5957. However, it strengthened against the Japanese yen to 2.5794/2.5824 from 2.5807/2.5837.

The ringgit also traded mostly lower against regional currencies.

It dipped against the Thai baht to 12.1439/12.1627 from 12.1424/12.1609 and against the Singapore dollar to 3.1956/3.1994 from 3.1935/3.1975 at Tuesday’s close.

The local note was unchanged against the Philippine peso at 6.50/6.51 and was almost flat against the Indonesian rupiah at 228.1/228.5.