Ringgit Opens Higher Against US Dollar Ahead Of 2Q GDP Print

By Siti Noor Afera Abu & Nur Athirah Mohd Shaharuddin

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 12 (Bernama) -- The ringgit opened higher against the US dollar on Wednesday, ahead of Malaysia’s second quarter (2Q) gross domestic product (GDP) official data, slated to be released on Aug 14, an economist said. 

At 8 am, the local currency rose to 4.0895/0950 against the greenback from yesterday’s close of 4.0905/0940.   

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the economy could expand by 5.8 per cent in the 2Q, underpinned by strong domestic performance.

“The Malaysian economy remained fairly resilient, which could provide further support for the ringgit.

“As such, the ringgit is expected to remain at around RM4.08-RM4.09 against the US dollar," he told Bernama.

Meanwhile, he said the US Dollar Index (DXY) is mostly flat as traders and investors await the United States (US) consumer price index (CPI) data point tonight, noting that the DXY is currently hovering around 99.72-99.89 points.

He said consensus estimates the US CPI to be at 3.4 per cent, a slight moderation from the actual CPI print of 3.5 per cent in June.

At the opening, the local currency was mostly lower against a basket of major currencies.

It strengthened against the Japanese yen to 2.5673/5709 from 2.5680/5703 at Tuesday’s close, but slid against the euro to 4.7205/7269 from 4.7188/7228, and eased vis-a-vis the British pound to 5.5241/5315 from 5.5238/5285 previously.

At the same time, the local note was traded mixed against regional currencies.

It increased against the Indonesian rupiah to 228.9/229.3 from 229.0/229.3 at yesterday’s close, but eased against the Thai baht to 12.3356/3585 from 12.3323/3481 previously.

The local note decreased against the Singapore dollar to 3.1952/1997 from 3.1930/1962 at the close on Tuesday, and traded little changed versus the Philippine peso at 6.67/6.69 from 6.68/6.69 yesterday.

-- BERNAMA