The ringgit opened flat against the US dollar but rose against other major currencies amid increased USD demand following the release of key US economic data yesterday.
At 9.50am, the ringgit was at 4.4970, down slightly against the US dollar from its close of 4.4850 at the end of Tuesday's trading.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd Chief Economist Afzanizam Rashid said the US Dollar Index (DXY) regained momentum after the US JOLTS Job Openings Survey report revealed higher job availability in November last year.
In addition, business sentiment in the services sector improved in December 2024 with the ISM Index for the non-manufacturing sector rising to 54.1 points from 52.1 points in the previous month.
With this signal, the US dollar will remain positive as the Federal Reserve (Fed) may not rush into cutting rates again this year.
He added that this means emerging market currencies such as the ringgit are likely to weaken against the US dollar for the time being.
Meanwhile, the ringgit was positive against major currencies.
It traded higher against the Japanese yen, rising to 2.8348/2.8384 from 2.8458/2.8492 at Tuesday's close, appreciated against the euro to 4.6384/4.6436 from 4.6756/4.6808 yesterday and rose against the British pound to 5.5955/5.6017 from 5.6341/5.6403 previously.
However, the ringgit was mixed against Asean currencies.
The local note rose against the Thai baht to 12.9684/12.9911 from 13.0045/13.0258 yesterday and rose higher against the Singapore dollar to 3.2864/3.2906 from 3.2983/3.3022 previously
In contrast, the ringgit remained unchanged against the Indonesian rupiah and the Philippine peso at 277.7/278.2 and 7.71/7.72 respectively.
