The ringgit currency opened higher following corrections in the US Dollar Index (DXY) and is in an oversold position.
He was also influenced by the announcement of Gross Domestic Output (KDNK) data for the fourth quarter of 2023 by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) today.
According to Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd's Chief Economist, Afzanizam Rashid, today's KDNK announcement will be closely monitored especially regarding the latest assessment by the central bank regarding this year's economic prospects and how it translates into basic monetary decisions.
He said again, the DXY is now in an upward pattern as the Federal Reserve (Fed) is expected to maintain a stable profit rate for some time before they start reducing it and a decline in retail sales will give investors the opportunity to lock in some profits.
Additionally, SPI Asset Management Managing Director Stephen Innes said that the ringgit may see some improvement today as global risk sentiment begins to rebound. US crude oil market prices and yields showed a decline.
He thinks profits may be limited ahead of the US Consumer Price Index announcement as investors may be cautious about another hot inflation reading following this week's Consumer Price Index data.
At 9am, the ringgit was at 4.7775/4.7810 versus the US dollar versus 4.7800/4.7850 at Thursday's close.
Meanwhile, the ringgit is traded mostly low compared to a basket of major currencies.
The local note rose against the Japanese yen to 3.1818/3.1844 from 3.1860/3.1896 at the end of Thursday, but fell against the British pound to 6.0125/6.0169 from 6.0008/6.0071 and fell to 14,143,000/5,000 against the euro/5.1357.
The ringgit trades mixed compared to other Asean currencies.
It was weaker against the Thai baht at 13.2180/13.2335 against 13.2084/2292 at last night's close and down against the Philippine peso at 8.54/8.56 against 8.53/8.54.
The local currency was unchanged versus the Singapore dollar at 3.5481/3.5512 versus 3.5481/3.5521 and unchanged versus the Indonesian rupiah at 305.2/305.4 from 305.7/306.0 previously.
