The ringgit opened slightly lower against the US dollar today as foreign exchange sentiment remained cautious amid geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East since last week.
At 10:13 am, the ringgit was trading at 3.9470, down 0.18% 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 risk-off sentiment was increasingly dominating the market.
He also noted that major indices recorded declines, while oil prices remained high, reflecting a cautious trading environment.
According to Mohd Afzanizam, Bank Negara Malaysia's (BNM) decision on the overnight policy rate (OPR) yesterday was in line with economists' expectations.
Meanwhile, policymakers are seen monitoring geopolitical developments in the Middle East before making any changes to the current monetary policy stance.
Meanwhile, Brent crude oil prices were trading at $85.41 a barrel, while the 10-year US Treasury yield recorded a four basis point increase to 4.13%.
At the open, the ringgit traded higher against other major currencies.
It rose against the euro to 4.5762/5902 from 4.5808/5884, rose against the Japanese yen to 2.5024/5102 from 2.5080/5124, but depreciated against the British pound to 5.2659/2819 from 5.2635/2722 yesterday.
Meanwhile, the ringgit was traded mixed against ASEAN currencies.
It gained against the Singapore dollar to 3.0795/0891 from 3.0885/0938 and strengthened against the Thai baht to 12.4072/4539 from 12.4711/5016 previously.
It was also unchanged against the Philippine peso at 6.72/6.75 from 6.72/6.74 and little changed against the Indonesian rupiah at 233.2/234.0 from 233.1/233.6 previously.
