SINGAPORE: Most emerging Asian currencies eased on Thursday as the dollar broadly rose on optimism over the US economy, while risk sentiment remained sour with slow global growth.
Trading was subdued overall with financial markets of a few emerging Asian countries, such as South Korea, being closed for holidays.
Malaysia's ringgit fell to its weakest in more than five weeks. The finance ministry on Wednesday said it would dissolve the board of advisers at 1MDB and take over its remaining assets in an apparent move to scale down the fund.
The ringgit lost as much as 0.6 percent to 4.0100 per dollar, its weakest since March 29, tracking its weakness in overnight non-deliverable forwards (NDFs) markets. Most of Malaysia's government bond prices also fell.
The Malaysian currency pared some of the earlier losses with a chart support at a 55-day moving average of 4.0101, analysts said.
It has been stronger than the average since late January. Exporters looked to buy the ringgit for settlements when it was weaker than 4.0000, while importers placed dollar bids around 3.9500-3.9600, traders said.
The ringgit on Thursday in NDFs strengthened as some short-term investors unwound bearish bets on the unit with higher oil prices.
The Philippine peso slid to 47.25 per dollar, its trough since March 2. Manila stocks lost 1.3 percent, underperforming regional peers on growing worries about political uncertainties ahead of a presidential election on Monday.
The dollar held firm after data showing U.S. service sector expanded in April as new orders and employment accelerated, indicating the world's top economy may rebound after stalling in the first quarter.
Emerging Asian currencies cut some of earlier losses after a private survey showed China's service-sector companies resumed hiring employees in April after a rare decline in the previous month although their activity expanded at slower pace.
Still, regional currencies stayed weaker as Asian equities slipped for a seventh straight session on worries about sluggish global growth.
"There is a generalised air of nervousness at this juncture," said Emmanuel Ng, foreign exchange strategist, OCBC Bank in Singapore.
"There is some unwind of the recent reflation trade on the back of risk aversion, putting the dollar at a near term advantage," Ng said.
Investors were awaiting the April U.S. jobs data due on Friday. Non-farm payrolls are forecast to have risen 202,000 last month, a Reuters poll of economists found. - Reuters
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