The local currency opened almost flat against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday as the US Dollar Index (DXY) edged up slightly to the 100-point mark after remaining anchored at 99-points in recent days.
At 10.10am, the ringgit was at 4.4140 against the US dollar, up slightly from its close of 4.4100 at the end of Tuesday's trade.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid attributed the market's cautious tone to the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the United States (US) tariff policy.
He said the direction of tariff policy remained uncertain, with no clear indication of whether China would bow to US pressure to start negotiations in the ongoing trade war.
The negative performance in US equity futures also pointed to potential weaker corporate earnings, possibly due to the impact of higher tariffs on China.
Given the stronger DXY, USD/MYR is expected to trade in a range of 4.41 to 4.42 today.
Meanwhile, the ringgit traded stronger against major currencies.
It rose against the euro to 4.9815/9928 from 4.9996/5.0059 at Tuesday's close, rose against the Japanese yen to 3.0818/0890 from 3.0852/0895 and was marginally higher against the British pound to 5.8353/8485 from 5.8366/8439.
Meanwhile, the local currency traded mixed against Asean currencies.
The ringgit strengthened against the Singapore dollar to 3.3455/3536 from 3.3498/3545 previously but weakened against the Thai baht to 13.1815/2201 from 13.1461/1708.
It was almost flat against the Indonesian rupiah at 262.0/262.7 from 262.0/262.5 and depreciated slightly against the Philippine peso to 7.76/7.79 from 7.76/7.78.
