The ringgit opened slightly higher against the US dollar on Wednesday amid a strong US Dollar Index (DXY) as the Federal Reserve (Fed) minutes signaled the next step in its rate cut cycle.
At 10.10am, the ringgit was at 4.4580, up 0.25% against the USD from its close of 4.4560 at the end of Tuesday.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd Chief Economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the Fed minutes revealed a consensus among members that monetary easing was based on current economic data.
However, the pace of policy adjustments is likely to be more cautious.
This scenario predicts the ringgit to be traded in a narrow range and heading towards a decline.
Meanwhile, the ringgit was also mostly traded higher against a basket of major currencies.
It was slightly stronger against the British pound to 5.6013/6138 from 5.6021/6071 at Tuesday's close, up against the euro to 4.6742/6847 from 4.6824/6866 but weaker against the Japanese yen to 2.9129/9196 from 2.8952/8980.
The local unit was traded mixed against Asean currencies.
The ringgit strengthened against the Thai baht to 12.8227/8615 from 12.8393/8564 but fell against the Singapore dollar to 3.3103/3182 from 3.3066/3098 recorded at yesterday's close.
It remained unchanged against the Philippine peso at 7.55/7.57 from 7.55/7.56 and relatively stable against the Indonesian rupiah at 279.5/280.3 from 279.6/280.0
