Ringgit rebounds against US dollar, Asean currencies ahead of US PMI

KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit rebounded from yesterday’s losses to end higher against the US dollar and Asean currencies, and was mostly firmer against other major currencies on Tuesday as investors await the US Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) June data release tonight.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Afzanizam Rashid said investors were closely monitoring the US PMI data for June, with market expectations on improvement from May’s readings.

“Beyond that, investors remain focused on the US Federal Reserve’s (Fed) hawkish stance and the possibility of further interest rate hikes,” he told Bernama.

Meanwhile, SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes said the local currency remained resilient, strengthening modestly despite risk-off sentiment weighing on global markets amid concerns surrounding the artificial intelligence-driven trade.

“The market is entering a wait-and-see phase as investors assess whether this week’s US Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) inflation report will validate the Fed’s policy direction or indicate that much of the US dollar’s strength has already been priced in,” he added.

At the close, the ringgit was mostly higher against a basket of major currencies.

At 6pm, the local currency appreciated to 4.1380/4.1430 against the greenback from 4.1465/4.1500 at Monday’s close.

It gained against the British pound to 5.4750/5.4816 from 5.4850/5.4896 at Monday’s close, rose versus the euro to 4.7223/4.7280 from 4.7506/4.7547 yesterday, and was almost flat vis-a-vis the Japanese yen at 2.5638/2.5669 from 2.5635/2.5658 previously.

The local note was firmer against regional currencies.

It appreciated against the Singapore dollar to 3.1959/3.2000 from 3.2069/3.2098 at Monday’s close, and increased versus the Thai baht to 12.4845/12.5053 from 12.5919/12.6075 previously.

The ringgit also advanced versus the Indonesian rupiah at 231.6/232.0 from 232.3/232.6 yesterday and strengthened against the Philippine peso to 6.74/6.75 from 6.78/6.79 previously.