KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit opened mixed against major and ASEAN currencies on Monday as investors assessed the Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) rate hike on Friday.
Meanwhile, the local note opened slightly lower against the US dollar today.
At 8 am, the ringgit eased to 4.0810/0865 against the greenback from last Friday’s close of 4.0795/0840.
Last Friday, the BOJ raised interest rates by 0.25 per cent to 1.25 per cent, pushing borrowing costs to their highest level in 31 years, and marked its first hike since June.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said this had raised concerns about the ease of unwinding the yen carry trade.
"In addition, higher crude oil prices could mean that inflation would remain elevated.
"This would provide the US Federal Reserve with a reason to continue raising interest rates by another 25 basis points later this year,” he told Bernama.
Back home, Mohd Afzanizam said the Malaysian economy has performed well, with last year’s growth at 5.2 per cent, and in the first half of 2026, the gross domestic product recorded 5.7 per cent growth.
"This would make normalising the overnight policy rate back to 3.00 per cent the right decision.
"Plus, Bank Negara Malaysia would be seen building up its policy buffer against potential headwinds in the future. Hence, the ringgit could be well supported and could stay in a narrow range today,” he told Bernama.
At the opening, the ringgit was mixed against a basket of major currencies.
The ringgit inched up against the euro to 4.6846/6909 from Friday’s close of 4.6849/6901, but fell against the Japanese yen to 2.5990/6027 from 2.5829/5860, and eased vis-a-vis the British pound to 5.4641/4714 from 5.4543/4603.
The local note traded mixed against its ASEAN peers.
The ringgit inched down versus the Singapore dollar to 3.1980/2026 from 3.1933/1971 at last Friday’s close and depreciated against the Indonesian rupiah to 229.8/230.2 from 229.7/230.0.
The local currency appreciated against the Thai baht to 12.2369/2585 from 12.2383/2562 previously and remained unchanged vis-a-vis the Philippine peso at 6.50/6.51. - Bernama
