KUALA LUMPUR, 5 DEC – The ringgit began higher versus the US dollar today, as the greenback resumed its retracement amid dovish Federal Reserve (Fed) officials in the United States (US) and rising risk appetite, according to an expert.
The local currency gained to 4.3750/3830 versus the US dollar at 9.06 a.m., up from 4.3835/3925 last Friday.
According to Stephen Innes, Managing Director of SPI Asset Management, the ringgit opened firmer this morning despite a more robust US jobs report, implying that traders are ignoring one good data point and deferring to the weaker run of US economic data as a signal that the Fed will be forced to cut rates in 2023.
“Crude oil prices are also rising following the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) meeting, which benefits the ringgit from a trading standpoint.
“Although the ringgit has lagged behind trade terms all year, it is finally catching up with China’s intensified measures to reopen its economy,” he told Bernama.
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