Ringgit Rises Against US Dollar Amid Heightened Uncertainties

By Nurunnasihah Ahmad Rashid

KUALA LUMPUR, June 16 (Bernama) -- The ringgit ended higher against the US dollar, supported by a weaker US Dollar Index (DXY) which fell by 0.21 per cent to 97.979 points amid heightened uncertainties, an economist said.

At 6 pm, the local note appreciated to 4.2370/2450 against the greenback from Friday’s close of 4.2435/2480.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the ongoing military conflict between Israel and Iran continues to dominate market attention at a time when investors are bracing for the upcoming US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting, scheduled for June 17–18.

“Euro, British pound and Swedish krona were gaining against the greenback, while emerging market currencies were mixed with dollar-ringgit oscillating within a tight range.

“The USD/MYR started off in the morning session at RM4.2513 but later in the day appreciated towards RM4.2450,” he told Bernama.

He noted Brent crude oil is currently hovering around US$73.84 per barrel suggesting that the crude oil market is fairly calm today compared to last Friday where it hit around US$77 in the intraday session.

“Expect market sentiments to be guarded as they observe how the military conflict would evolve,” he said, adding that the downside risks to growth are clearly visible.

Mohd Afzanizam said that this week’s FOMC meeting will be critical as to how the US Federal Reserve would navigate such challenges along with weak fiscal position by the US government and disruptive trade policies adopted by the current administration.

At the closing, the ringgit traded higher against a basket of major currencies.

It rose versus the Japanese yen to 2.9397/9455 from 2.9448/9482 at Friday’s close, but weakened against the British pound to 5.7555/7664 from 5.7482/7543 and decreased vis-à-vis the euro to 4.9077/9170 from 4.8906/8958 previously. 

The ringgit was mixed versus its ASEAN counterparts.

It improved versus the Thai baht to 13.0389/0696 from 13.0807/1018 at Friday’s close and gained against the Philippine peso to 7.51/7.53 from 7.55/7.56.

However, it fell against the Singapore dollar to 3.3102/3167 from 3.3077/3118 and edged down vis-a-vis the Indonesian rupiah to 260.4/261.1 from 260.2/260.6 previously.

-- BERNAMA