The ringgit closed slightly higher against the US dollar as the US currency weakened ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes today.
At 10:25 am, the ringgit opened at 4.0500, strengthening 0.20% against the US dollar since opening early Tuesday in the Asian session.
The announcement of the FOMC minutes is expected to be the main focus of the market today as the economic calendar is expected to remain lackluster in most markets ahead of the New Year holidays.
Investors continue to assess the possibility of the next interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve (Fed) in 2026, following the 25 basis point interest rate cut at the policy meeting last December.
Meanwhile, Director of Investment Strategy and National Economist of IPPFA Sdn Bhd, Mohd Sedek Jantan explained that the strengthening of the ringgit was driven by the dynamics of domestic trends and not simply dependent on external risk sentiment.
He also noted that although market liquidity at the end of the year is expected to be limited, the current trend still favors the local currency.
At the opening, the ringgit traded lower against major currencies.
It rose slightly against the euro to 4.7677/7877 from 4.7787/7840 yesterday, rose slightly against the British pound at 5.4711/4941 from 5.4742/4804, but depreciated against the Japanese yen to 2.5970/6082 from 2.5956/5987 previously.
However, the ringgit traded stronger against ASEAN currencies.
It rose against the Singapore dollar to 3.1505/1642 from 3.1572/1610 yesterday and rose against the Thai baht to 12.7910/8540 from 12.8985/9190.
It also increased against the Philippine peso to 6.88/6.92 from 6.90/6.91 and increased against the Indonesian rupiah to 241.2/242.3 from 241.7/242.1 previously.
