The ringgit recorded a decline for the second consecutive day against the US dollar, although the ongoing uncertainty in the United States (US) continued to weigh on the US dollar.
At 10:28 am, the ringgit was trading at 3.9380, having declined against the US dollar since opening early Friday trading in the Asian session.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd Chief Economist, Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid explained that the US Dollar Index (DXY) declined 0.28% to 96.175 points after President Donald Trump continued to put pressure on the Federal Reserve (Fed) to lower interest rates.
He also stated that Trump will announce his nominee for the Fed chairmanship next week.
According to Mohd Afzanizam, Trump has hinted that the individual chosen is in line with his goal of easing policy rates to lower levels.
At the opening, the ringgit was trading higher against a basket of other currencies.
It rose against the euro to 4.6899/7162 from 4.6953/7001 yesterday, rose against the British pound to 5.4114/4417 from 5.4207/4263 and rose against the Japanese yen to 2.5588/5733 from 2.5616/5616.
The ringgit also traded stronger against its ASEAN peers.
It strengthened against the Singapore dollar to 3.1005/1181 from 3.1065/1099 and gained against the Thai baht to 12.5356/6152.
It also gained against the Philippine peso to 6.65/6.69 from 6.66/6.67 and rebounded against the Indonesian rupiah to 233.8/235.3 from 234.2/234.7 previously.
