KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit ended the day on a positive note against the US dollar, with investors eagerly awaiting the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) figures from the United States (US) to gain insights into inflation trends. At the closing bell, the local currency stood at 4.6570/6610 against the greenback, a slight improvement compared to Monday’s closing rate of 4.6685/6725. Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid, the chief economist and head of social finance at Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd, said market participants are closely monitoring the US CPI print to gauge the direction of US interest rates. “The US CPI print on Wednesday is the focus of the week as consensus estimates showed that inflation would moderate in June,” he explained to Bernama. According to consensus estimates, the US headline and core CPI are expected to record slower increases in June at 3.1% (May: 4.0%) and 5.0% (May: 5.3%), respectively.
In domestic trading, the ringgit declined against major currencies. The currency weakened against the euro, trading at 5.1264/1308 compared to the previous close of 5.1176/1220. It also slipped against the Japanese yen, with rates at 3.3162/3193 from 3.2761/2792. Furthermore, the ringgit weakened against the British pound, trading at 6.0136/0187 from 5.9785/9836. Notably, the local note also experienced a decline against other Asean currencies. Against the Singapore dollar, the ringgit fell to 3.4723/4755 from Monday’s closing rate of 3.4612/4644. Additionally, it slid against the Thai baht to 13.3780/3956 from 13.2790/2961. The ringgit also showed weakness against the Indonesian rupiah, trading at 307.2/307.7 from 306.9/307.4, as well as against the Philippine peso at 8.42/8.43 from 8.38/8.39. – Bernama
Credit: The Star : Business Feed
