The ringgit opened stronger against the US dollar on Friday, extending its gains, after economic data from the Federal Reserve (US) reinforced expectations of an interest rate cut at its next policy meeting.
At 10.40am, the ringgit was at 4.2320, having remained unchanged against the US dollar since it opened in early trade on Friday.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said US initial jobless claims rose more than expected to 226,000 last week, exceeding market expectations of 221,000.
He said the increase was a record for two consecutive weeks, reflecting the view that there were signs of weakness in the labour market. However, FOMC officials still believe there is a lot of data to assess before the September meeting.
In the domestic market, the ringgit could remain supported after experiencing selling pressure in yesterday's afternoon session.
Meanwhile, the ringgit was mostly lower against a basket of major and regional currencies in early trade.
It fell against the Japanese yen to 2.8750/8888 from 2.8732/8765 on Thursday and weakened against the British pound to 5.6770/7039 from 5.6596/6656. It strengthened against the euro, however, to 4.9283/9516 from 4.9411/9463.
Against regional peers, the local unit was firmer.
It rose against the Singapore dollar to 3.2906/3064 from 3.2973/3013 and rose against the Thai baht to 13.0653/1346 from 13.0954/1146.
The ringgit also appreciated against the Philippine peso to 7.39/7.44 from 7.42/7.44 and strengthened against the Indonesian rupiah to 259.1/260.4 from 259.9/260.3.
