THE ringgit eased further against the US dollar today as the greenback continues to stay firm ahead the Federal Reserve meeting next week, which is widely expected to raise interest rates by a further 25 basis points, an analyst said.

At 6pm, the local note stood at 4.5600/5655 against the greenback compared with 4.5400/5465 at yesterday’s close.

A dealer said the ringgit movement was in tandem with that of most Asian currencies tracking the Chinese yuan, which is under renewed pressure on the back of widening yield differentials with the United States and signs of a faltering economic recovery.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist and social finance head Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the ringgit was seen weaker towards the end of the session to 4.5623 after experiencing a steep appreciation since last week.

“There could be a combination of profit-taking activities as well as rising concern over China’s economy, which may have led to higher demand for the US dollar. The US Dollar Index shot up to 100.69 points today, a sign that demand for the US dollar is returning,” he told Bernama.

Meanwhile, the ringgit was traded mostly higher against a basket of major currencies at today’s close.

It improved vis-a-vis the euro to 5.0735/0796 from 5.0902/0975 at Thursday’s close, gained versus the Japanese yen to 3.2185/2229 from 3.2540/2589 but slid against the British pound to 5.8669/8740 from 5.8630/8714 previously.

The local note traded mixed against other Asean currencies.

The ringgit eased vis-a-vis the Philippine peso to 8.33/8.34 from 8.32/8.34 yesterday and slid against the Indonesian rupiah to 303.4/303.9 from 302.9/303.5 previously.

It rose against the Thai baht to 13.2327/2541 from 13.3525/3780 and increased versus the Singapore dollar to 3.4304/4350 from 3.4324/4378 yesterday. – Bernama, July 21, 2023.