Ringgit closes higher against US dollar despite Fed rate hike expectations
Interest rate futures put the odds of US rate hikes in October and December at 70.9% and 80.6%, up from 55.4% and 77.6%, says analyst.
KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian ringgit demonstrated a positive trend against the US dollar on Friday, despite expectations of additional interest rate increases by the Federal Reserve. By 6pm, the ringgit reached 4.0715/4.0765 against the greenback, marking an improvement from yesterday's close of 4.0840/4.0880. Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Afzanizam Rashid attributed the ringgit's strength to bargain-hunting activity.
Earlier in the day, the ringgit rose to RM4.0673 against the US dollar, but later softened to RM4.0743 in the afternoon. Rashid noted that the US Dollar Index (DXY) maintained its support at 101.182 points, with a 70.9% chance of a rate hike in October and an 80.6% chance in December, up from 55.4% and 77.6% last Monday. Throughout the day, the ringgit strengthened compared to several major currencies, including the euro, British pound, Singapore dollar, and Indonesian rupiah. However, it weakened against the Japanese yen and Thai baht, as well as the Philippine peso.
Written by urgent.news from Free Malaysia Today's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
