Ringgit Opens Almost Flat Against US Dollar On Cautious Sentiment

By Anas Abu Hassan and Fatin Umairah Abdul Hamid

KUALA LUMPUR, June 17 (Bernama) -- The ringgit opened flat against the US dollar on Tuesday as investors steered towards the sidelines amid cautious sentiment ahead of the two-day Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting beginning later today, said an analyst.

At 8 am, the local note stood at 4.2360/2470 versus the greenback from yesterday’s close of 4.2370/2450.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said market sentiment will likely remain in cautious mode as investors await the latest assessment by the US Federal Reserve (Fed) in view of current global geopolitical developments. 

“The focus now is on the two-day FOMC meeting, which will commence on June 17.

“On that note, the ringgit is expected to stay flat as markets await the latest assessment by the Fed surrounding the current development,” he told Bernama.

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

It rose versus the Japanese yen to 2.9266/9346 from 2.9397/9455 at Monday’s close, strengthened against the British pound to 5.7461/7611 from 5.7555/7664, and increased vis-à-vis the euro to 4.8926/9053 from 4.9077/9170 previously. 

In the meantime, the ringgit was mostly flat against its ASEAN counterparts.

It stood at 260.4/261.2 vis-à-vis the Indonesian rupiah and stayed at 7.51/7.53 against the Philippine peso.

However, it inched up against the Singapore dollar to 3.3058/3149 from 3.3102/3167 at yesterday’s close, but it fell versus the Thai baht to 13.0463/0866 from 13.0389/0696.

-- BERNAMA