KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit opened marginally firmer against the US dollar and other major currencies on Friday, supported by a pullback in United States Treasury yields and early Asian session positioning, despite the US dollar index (DXY) closing slightly higher.
At 8 am, the ringgit strengthened to 3.8800/8930 against the greenback from Thursday’s close of 3.8865/8925.
IPPFA Sdn Bhd director of investment strategy and country economist Mohd Sedek Jantan said the greenback found mild support from a marginally firmer US labour market print as the weekly US initial jobless claims came in lower than expected at 212,000, compared with consensus estimates of 217,000, although slightly higher than the previous week’s 208,000.
"The softer US yield backdrop reduced immediate support for the dollar, allowing selective Asian currencies, including the ringgit, to open on a firmer footing,” he told Bernama.
Echoing Mohd Sedek, Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the DXY was slightly higher by 0.09 per cent to 97.791 points, while Brent crude stabilised around US$70.75 per barrel as talks between the US and Iran in Geneva appeared to be progressing.
"The US-Iran talks are seen to be progressing, but sceptics remain, as there is no clear evidence that either side is willing to concede enough to avoid military conflict.
"We sense the traders may have become cautious as the good news has already been priced in,” he said.
As such, he expects the greenback-ringgit pair to hover in a narrow range today.
At the open, the ringgit traded higher against a basket of major currencies.
It strengthened against the Japanese yen to 2.4893/4978 from 2.4902/4942 at Thursday’s close, rose vis-a-vis the British pound to 5.2345/2520 from 5.2573/2654, and edged up versus the euro to 4.5796/5949 from 4.5853/5924 previously.
The local note also trended firmer against its ASEAN peers.
The ringgit inched up versus the Singapore dollar to 3.0701/0809 from 3.0755/0805 at yesterday’s close, increased vis-a-vis the Thai baht to 12.4759/5269 from 12.5169/5435, higher against the Indonesian rupiah to 231.5/232.3 from 231.9/232.3, and gained versus the Philippine peso to 6.73/6.76 from 6.74/6.76 yesterday. - Bernama
