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THE ringgit opened the week stronger against the US dollar, rising to 4.2365/2515 at 8 am on Monday from last Friday’s close of 4.2420/2480. The rebound comes after two consecutive days of losses, driven by market caution surrounding new US tariff proposals.
Analysts noted that investor sentiment remains fragile amid fresh concerns over potential trade disruptions stemming from US President Donald Trump’s latest tariff threats on semiconductors and pharmaceuticals — a move that could reverberate across both domestic and global markets.
Bernama reported Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid saying the ringgit is expected to remain in a tight trading range of 4.24 to 4.25 in the near term, as markets await major economic indicators.
“The ringgit will continue to trade cautiously ahead of the US Consumer Price Index data on Tuesday,” he said, pointing to consensus forecasts of a slight uptick in July inflation to 2.8 per cent from 2.7 per cent, with core inflation expected to rise to 3.0 per cent from 2.9 per cent.
He also highlighted Malaysia’s second-quarter GDP figures, due on Friday, as a potential market driver. While preliminary estimates in July suggested a 4.5 per cent year-on-year expansion, weaker Industrial Production Index (2.0 per cent) and Services Index (5.0 per cent) data raise the possibility of a downward revision to the final figure.
Meanwhile, the US dollar remained resilient, supported by a mix of cautious signals from the US Federal Reserve. The dollar index stood at 98.243 points, up 0.06 per cent.
The ringgit also posted gains against other major currencies. It advanced to 2.8693/8796 against the Japanese yen, 4.9343/9517 versus the euro, and 5.6951/7153 against the British pound. Regional currencies saw similar movement, with the ringgit rising to 3.2966/3086 against the Singapore dollar, 13.0801/1381 against the Thai baht, 260.0/261.0 against the Indonesian rupiah, and 7.42/7.45 against the Philippine peso. - August 11, 2025