The ringgit opened stronger against the US dollar on Thursday as the greenback weakened following President Donald Trump's announcement of a 90-day reprieve in retaliatory tariffs.
At 10.40am, the ringgit was at 4.4770, up 0.38% against the USD from its close of 4.4935 at the close of trading on Wednesday.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the pause in retaliatory tariffs for most countries indicated better sentiment in the currency market.
It opened the door for negotiations to stabilise better trade deals and he expected the ringgit and other currencies to perform better.
But despite expressing confidence in securing a strong deal with China and downplaying the risk of further escalation, Trump sharply raised tariffs on Chinese goods, increasing them from 104% to 125%.
Meanwhile, the ringgit strengthened against major currencies.
It strengthened against the Japanese yen to 3.0326/0432 from 3.0921/0964, appreciated against the euro to 4.8969/9133 from 4.9640/9700, and rose against the British pound to 5.7346/7538 from 5.7609/7700 yesterday.
The local notes were mostly stronger against Asean currencies.
It rose against the Singapore dollar to 3.3279/3398 from 3.3349/3395, rose against the Philippine peso to 7.79/7.82 from 7.83/7.85, and rose against the Indonesian rupiah to 264.9/265.9 from 266.3/266.7 yesterday.
However, it weakened against the Thai baht to 13.0778/1325 from 12.9915/13.0153.
