KUALA LUMPUR, July 30 — The ringgit opened higher against the US dollar on Friday as trading of the greenback remained sideways over the United States’ (US) weaker-than-expected economic data, a dealer said.
At 9.02am, the ringgit rose to 4.2350/2400 versus the greenback from Thursday’s close of 4.2360/2410.
ActivTrades trader Dyogenes Rodrigues Diniz said although the US dollar has managed to regain some grounds, trading remained sideways as the US gross domestic product (GDP) data came in below expectations at 6.5 per cent versus the forecasted 8.5 per cent.
“The fact that the GDP came in well below expectations raises questions about the efficiency of the monetary policies adopted by the US Federal Reserve (US Fed) so far, with the American central bank trying to kick-start the economy at the cost of higher inflation.
“The million-dollar question now is whether the US Fed needs to increase the stimulus, and how far can it safely go without jeopardising the purchasing power of the American consumer because of inflation,” he said.
Meanwhile, at the opening bell, the local note was traded mixed against a basket of major currencies.
The ringgit strengthened against the Singapore dollar to 3.1275/1315 from 3.1285/1324 at yesterday’s close and appreciated against the British pound to 5.9066/9135 from 5.9092/9162 previously.
However, the local unit weakened vis-a-vis the euro to 5.0316/0375 from 5.0294/0353 and depreciated against the Japanese yen to 3.8648/8697 from 3.8562/8611 previously. — Reuters
