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THE Malaysian ringgit opened slightly stronger against the US dollar on Monday, reflecting cautious investor sentiment amid mixed signals from officials of the US Federal Reserve.
At 8am, the local currency was quoted at 4.1435/1590 against the greenback, up from last Friday’s close of 4.1460/1495.
Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid, chief economist at Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd, explained that senior Fed officials had expressed differing views on the direction of US interest rates.
“The Boston Fed president appeared reluctant to support a rate cut in December, citing mixed signals from the labour market and inflation risks.
Meanwhile, the New York Fed president suggested that the current monetary policy stance is restrictive, indicating there may be room for a cut in the benchmark interest rate,” he told Bernama.
Dr Mohd Afzanizam expects the ringgit to remain in a narrow trading range of RM4.14 to RM4.15 today.
At the morning open, the ringgit was mostly firmer against a basket of major currencies. It strengthened against the Japanese yen to 2.6447/6548 from 2.6453/6479, and against the euro to 4.7679/7858 from 4.7779/7819, while weakening slightly versus the British pound at 5.4263/4466 from 5.4143/4188.
Against regional currencies, the ringgit edged lower against the Thai baht at 12.7649/8230 from 12.7601/7759, but rose against the Indonesian rupiah at 247.8/248.9 from 248.0/248.3. It remained largely unchanged versus the Philippine peso at 7.04/7.07 and the Singapore dollar at 3.1695/1816.
Market watchers said the cautious tone reflects uncertainty over the US Federal Reserve’s next move, with investors weighing mixed economic data alongside official statements from different Fed leaders. - November 24, 2025