KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 13 — The ringgit is expected to move in a tight range against the US dollar next week and trade between the 4.44 and 4.46 level, said a dealer.

ActivTrades market analyst Alexander Londono said the greenback has touched a one-month low against the ringgit by breaking below the 4.44 level and will close the week with a slight loss of 0.25 per cent.

"The US dollar/ringgit pair has been rising since the end of June, but by mid-July, when it broke above the 4.45 level, it consolidated just above that zone, with 4.46 acting as a resistance,” he told Bernama.

He noted that the dollar/ringgit has been traded almost flat between the 4.46 and the 4.44 levels.

"Inflation data from the United States has weakened the dollar against its main counterparts and also against emerging currencies like the ringgit,” he added.

For the week just ended, the ringgit was traded mostly higher against the US dollar, except for Monday, as encouraging economic data, namely, Malaysia’s Industrial Production Index and the second quarter gross domestic product growth supported the ringgit.

On Friday, the ringgit strengthened against the greenback to 4.4435/4455 compared with 4.4490/4520 a week earlier.

The local note, however, traded mixed against a basket of major currencies, except versus the British pound, on a Friday-to-Friday basis.

It rose against the Japanese yen to 3.3292/3310 from 3.3459/3484 previously and improved against the British pound to 5.3975/3999 from 5.3989/4025.

However, it depreciated against the Singapore dollar at 3.2406/2428 from 3.2330/2355 last week and went down versus the euro to 4.5759/5780 from 4.5513/5544 a week earlier. — Bernama