Ringgit ends higher against US dollar at 4.1730

KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit ended higher against the US dollar today, supported by improved sentiment towards the local currency and a correction in the greenback, an analyst said.

At 6 pm, the local note climbed to 4.1730/1760 versus the greenback from last Friday's closing of 4.1770/1810.

According to Bank Islam chief economist Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid, the US dollar index or DXY has skidded below 94 points, suggesting that a technical correction is underway following its overbought position based on technical charts.

"The ringgit seems constructive for now given the elevated levels of commodity prices, namely Brent crude,” he told Bernama.

However, he said the situation could be still fluid as demand for the safe-haven asset remains intact as concerns over China’s real estate companies going into default could spark a flight back to safety in the financial markets.

"Meantime, all eyes will be on US labour markets on Friday where the data on non-farm payroll (NFP) will be released,” he added.

At the close, the ringgit was traded mixed against a basket of major currencies.

It appreciated versus the Japanese yen to 3.7510/7540 from 3.7580/7616 last Friday and improved against the Singapore dollar at 3.0727/0751 compared with 3.0756/0788 previously.

The local noted declined versus the British pound to 5.6674/6714 from 5.6373/6427 and depreciated vis-a-vis the euro to 4.8440/8475 from 4.8361/8408 at Friday’s close. - Bernama