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KUALA LUMPUR – The ringgit closed higher against the greenback for the second consecutive day as weaker United States consumer data lifted hopes that the US Federal Reserve (Fed) would soften its monetary stance of aggressive interest rate hikes.
At 6pm, the local note jumped to 4.7120/7165 against the US dollar from 4.7350/7375 at yesterday’s closing.
An analyst said the weaker-than-expected US consumer confidence reading, as well as higher palm oil prices, had lifted the local currency for the past two days.
AmSpec Agri reported that palm oil exports for October 1-25 rose 6.6% to 1.15 million tonnes from 1.08 million tonnes shipped a month earlier in the same period.
“The continuous raining days have raised concerns over palm oil stocks and traders are making a move to secure their stocks,” an analyst from the firm said.
Meanwhile, continuous buying spree in selective stocks in healthcare, plantation, and telecommunications sectors boosted Bursa Malaysia to end in positive zone after yesterday’s brief pause.
An analyst attributed the rise in trading to a pre-election rally.
At 5pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI increased 10.57 points to end at its intraday high of 1,454.98 compared with yesterday’s close of 1,444.41.
The barometer index opened 3.16 points higher at 1,447.57.
The broader market was also positive with gainers trouncing losers 519 to 354, while 376 counters were unchanged, 1,115 untraded, and 11 others suspended. – Bernama, October 26, 2022