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THE ringgit rebounded to open slightly higher against the U.S. dollar on Friday as investors positioned themselves ahead of the release of Malaysia’s advance gross domestic product estimates for the fourth quarter of 2025 later in the day.
At 8am, the local currency was trading at 4.0515/0600 against the greenback, marginally firmer than Thursday’s closing level of 4.0535/0595.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the advance GDP figures, due to be announced today, are widely expected to point to a solid expansion in the Malaysian economy.
“The advance GDP figures are due to be announced today, with consensus estimates pointing to a stronger growth rate of 5.4 per cent.
“Strong economic growth could mean there is less urgency for the central bank to cut interest rate this year.
“Hence, this could provide support to the ringgit,” he told Bernama.
He added that the local currency is likely to trade within a narrow range of between RM4.05 and RM4.06 against the US dollar today.
On Thursday, the ringgit had closed 0.17 per cent lower against the greenback as the US dollar strengthened following better-than-expected US Initial Jobless Claims data, which dampened near-term expectations for interest rate cuts in the United States.
The US Dollar Index rose 0.32 per cent to 99.371 points after initial jobless claims fell to 198,000 last week, below consensus estimates of 215,000. US Treasury yields also climbed, with the two-year and 10-year yields rising by 3.7 and 5.6 basis points to settle at 3.57 per cent and 4.17 per cent respectively.
At the opening, the ringgit traded higher against a basket of major currencies. It strengthened against the Japanese yen to 2.5547/5604 from 2.5594/5633 at Thursday’s close, appreciated versus the euro to 4.7034/7133 from 4.7167/7236, and advanced against the British pound to 5.4213/4327 from 5.4467/4548.
The local note showed mixed performance against regional peers. It edged up against the Singapore dollar to 3.1456/1524 from 3.1491/1540 and strengthened versus the Thai baht to 12.8967/9341 from 12.9096/9349 previously.
The ringgit was flat against the Philippine peso at 6.81/6.83 and was little changed versus the Indonesian rupiah at 239.7/240.4 compared with 239.9/240.3 at yesterday’s close. - January 16, 2026