The Malaysian ringgit fell past the 4.00 mark against the US dollar as market sentiment soured over West Asia ceasefire uncertainties.
KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit retreated to the 4.00 level against the US dollar at noon, as risk-off mode dominated market sentiment.
This followed growing scepticism over a ceasefire in Iran after United States President Donald Trump indicated he would not commit to a deal with Tehran.
“Following the announcement, the US Dollar Index (DXY) was seen climbing 0.28% to 99.873 points, holding steady as safe-haven demand, while US benchmark equities indices fell more than one per cent,” said Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid.
The local unit had opened at 3.9855 versus the greenback.
At 12.30 pm, the ringgit stood at 4.0075/0105 versus the US dollar, marking its lowest position in two months.
It last stood at 4.0045 on Jan 23.
Financial markets continued to be heavily influenced by the hostilities involving the US, Israel, and Iran.
Both Tehran and Tel Aviv launched military strikes amid growing international warnings about the conflict’s severe economic costs.
Equities managed to briefly pare some of their steep morning losses following reports that Iran had formally responded to a US truce proposal.
The ringgit also traded softer against a basket of other major currencies.
It slid versus the Japanese yen to 2.5114/5135 from 2.4951/5077 at Friday’s opening.
It fell against the British pound to 5.3460/3500 from 5.3143/3403 earlier and dropped vis-à-vis the euro to 4.6243/6277 from 4.5969/6194 previously.
Against ASEAN currencies, it eased versus the Singapore dollar to 3.1177/1203 from 3.0994/1148 at the opening.
It slipped versus the Thai baht to 12.1942/2085 from 12.0868/1566 this morning.
The local note edged down vis-a-vis the Indonesian rupiah to 236.5/236.7 from 235.7/237.0 earlier.
It also inched down against the Philippine peso to 6.64/6.65 from 6.61/6.65 previously.