RINGGIT OPENS HIGHER VS GREENBACK

By Nurunnasihah Ahmad Rashid

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 17 (Bernama) -- The ringgit opened stronger against the US dollar on Friday, lifted by growing expectations of an imminent US interest rate cut and a broader risk-off mood in global markets.

At 8 am, the local note climbed to 4.2160/2335 against the greenback from 4.2275/2300 at Thursday’s close.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said markets were in a risk-off mode, with gold prices reaching new highs and US Treasury yields declining.

“These developments are being compounded by the ongoing US government shutdown, which has delayed key economic data releases needed for informed monetary policy decisions,” he told Bernama.

He added that the US Dollar Index slipped 0.46 per cent to 98.336, further weighing on the greenback.

“With the US Federal Reserve expected to cut interest rates at the upcoming Federal Open Market Committee meeting at the end of this month, the ringgit may see further appreciation.

“Additionally, the latest issues surrounding US lenders warrant closer scrutiny to assess how they might evolve and affect credit markets. Again, such news can be dollar-negative,” he said.

At the opening, the ringgit traded mostly lower against major currencies, except for the British pound, which firmed to 5.6663/6898 from 5.6792/6826 at Thursday’s close. It slipped against the euro to 4.9306/9511 from 4.9284/9313 and eased versus the Japanese yen to 2.8073/8191 from 2.7943/7961 previously.

Meanwhile, the local note strengthened against most ASEAN currencies. It appreciated against the Singapore dollar to 3.2601/2739 from 3.2630/2651, advanced versus the Indonesian rupiah to 254.2/255.4 from 254.9/255.2, rose against the Philippine peso to 7.25/7.28 from 7.27/7.28, and gained vis-à-vis the Thai baht to 12.9623/13.0229 from 12.9933/13.0151.

-- BERNAMA