THE ringgit ended lower against the US dollar today on weak demand for the local currency due to concerns over the bleak global economic outlook.

At 6pm, the local note fell to 4.6720/6765 against the greenback from yesterday’s close of 4.6615/6655.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist and social finance head Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the Japanese government had also expressed concerns over the strong greenback as it prepared to address the sliding yen.

According to reports, the Japanese yen weakened to a 10-month low against the dollar, putting traders on alert for more intervention by the Japanese government.

“The US central bank is likely to maintain its restrictive monetary stance, giving support to the US dollar,” he said.

“It is giving really mixed signals as to the interest rate’s direction. However, the US Federal Reserve is expected to maintain its hawkish stance in light of the country’s resilient labour market.”

At the close, the ringgit traded lower against a basket of major currencies.

It decreased against the euro to 5.0145/0193 from 5.0088/0131 at yesterday’s close, slid against the British pound to 5.8657/8713 from 5.8534/8585 and slipped against the Japanese yen to 3.1694/1727 from 3.1670/1699.

The local note was also traded lower against other Asean currencies.

It depreciated against the Singapore dollar to 3.4308/4343 from 3.4238/4272 at yesterday’s close and went down versus the Thai baht to 13.1532/1710 from 13.1388/1567.

The local currency also eased against the Indonesian rupiah to 305.5/305.8 from 305.2/305.6 previously and was slightly lower against the Philippine peso at 8.20/8.21 from 8.19/8.21. – Bernama, September 6, 2023.