Ringgit opens higher as weak US jobs data weighs on dollar
KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit opened higher against the US dollar on Monday, following reduced expectations of a United States Federal Reserve (Fed) interest rate hike amid weaker-than-expected US jobs data, which is weighing on the greenback.
The ringgit opened higher against the US dollar on Monday, as weaker-than-expected US jobs data weighed on the greenback. The nonfarm payrolls (NFP) report showed that only 29,000 jobs were added in September, significantly lower than the consensus estimate of 90,000. This led to a slight increase in the US unemployment rate to 4.2% in September, up from 4.1% for the previous two months.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid stated that the Fed may decide not to raise interest rates at its upcoming meeting on Oct 27-28. The ringgit traded higher against most major currencies at the opening, including the Japanese yen, euro, and Singapore dollar. However, it weakened against the British pound and remained unchanged against the Philippine peso and Indonesian rupiah.
Brief written by urgent.news from New Straits Times's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
