By Danni Haizal Danial Donald
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 7 (Bernama) -- The ringgit opened mostly higher against other major currencies, and was almost unchanged versus the US dollar, as escalating global tensions capped gains in the greenback ahead of the release of the United States’ non-farm payrolls (NFP) data.
At 8.05 am, the local currency eased marginally to 4.0895/0960 against the greenback from Thursday’s close of 4.0875/0920.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the NFP report, due tonight, is likely to drive the US dollar higher, as the US labour market is seen to remain resilient.
“The US Dollar Index (DXY) also rose by 0.25 per cent to 99.930 points. The initial jobless claims were slightly higher last week to 199,000 from 198,000 in the prior week and have remained below the 200,000 level for three consecutive weeks.
“Based on the consensus estimates, the NFP is expected to improve to 88,000 during July after declining to 57,000 in June,” he told Bernama.
Mohd Afzanizam also expects US dollar-ringgit trading to range between RM4.08 and RM4.10 today.
Meanwhile, Quintex Intel global strategist Stephen Innes said the ringgit is expected to ease as risk sentiment has turned negative following additional details regarding the Iran–Oman Strait of Hormuz agreement.
“The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attacks on what it describes as hostile actors, broadly including those supporting the US or Israel, have renewed concerns over regional security and energy flows.
“Therefore, crude oil prices have surged overnight, while the US dollar has attracted a safe-haven bid ahead of the US NFP report,” he said.
Innes added that if the stronger Automatic Data Processing (ADP) employment reading is reflected in the official labour data, the combination of resilient US employment and higher oil prices could support another firm session for the greenback, making the ringgit defensive.
The ringgit traded mostly higher against a basket of major currencies at the open.
It inched up against the Japanese yen to 2.5808/5850 from 2.5892/5922 at Thursday’s close and rose against the euro to 4.7123/7198 from 4.7162/7213, but eased vis-a-vis the British pound to 5.5020/5108 from 5.4997/5058.
Against regional currencies, the ringgit traded mixed.
It edged up against the Singapore dollar to 3.1860/1913 from 3.1881/1919 and rose versus the Thai baht to 12.3442/3701 from 12.3628/3801.
Meanwhile, the ringgit was almost flat against the Philippine peso at 6.72/6.74 from 6.72/6.73 and inched down against the Indonesian rupiah to 228.1/228.6 from 228.0/228.4.
-- BERNAMA