BERNAMA – The ringgit opened marginally higher against the US dollar yesterday, recovering from its sharp fall yesterday after the US dollar surged due to the likelihood of the United States (US) Federal Reserve (Fed) raising the interest rate.
At 9am, the local note stood at 4.5190/5235 versus the greenback compared with Wednesday’s closing rate of 4.5230/5265.
SPI Asset Management managing director Stephen Innes suggested that the ringgit might have recovered some lost ground.
“But investors will remain extremely cautious regardless of how the ringgit ends the day,” he told Bernama.
Innes said the US Fed is still dealing with an unusual mix of labour market strength and weakness in the most interest rate-sensitive sectors like housing.
“While the Fed is being asked for too much to solve a structural labour supply issue, unfortunately for Asian investors, the Fed looks prepared to raise interest rates to tamp down inflation,” he said.
Meanwhile, Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd’s head of economics, market analysis and social finance, Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the ringgit is expected to stay weak and continue to flirt around the immediate resistant level of MYR4.5293.
