Ringgit Opens Higher As Weak US Jobs Data Hits US Dollar

By Anas Abu Hassan

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 12 (Bernama) -- The ringgit opened higher against the US dollar on Friday as the greenback retreated after weaker United States (US) jobs data raised expectations of interest rate cuts.

At 8 am, the local unit stood at 4.2065/2225 per dollar, firmer than Thursday’s close of 4.2185/2240.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd, chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the latest US Consumer Price Index (CPI) matched forecasts, but Initial Jobless Claims rose to 263,000 last week, well above market expectations of 235,000.

The US August CPI rose 2.9 per cent, in line with consensus estimates and up from 2.7 per cent in July. Core CPI held steady at 3.1 per cent for a second straight month, after rising 2.9 per cent in June.

“The CPI print was within expectations, clearing the path for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates next week,” he told Bernama.

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

It eased to 2.8569/8680 against the yen from 2.8509/8548 at Thursday’s close, weakened to 5.7095/7312 against the pound from 5.6954/7028, and slipped to 4.9351/9538 against the euro from 4.9293/9357.

Against ASEAN currencies, the local note was mostly firmer. It strengthened to 255.5/256.6 against the rupiah from 256.2/256.7, inched up to 3.2817/2945 versus the Singapore dollar from 3.2829/2874, and improved to 7.35/7.39 against the peso from 7.37/7.39.

It, however, fell to 13.2576/3156 against the baht from 13.2432/2663 previously.

-- BERNAMA