The ringgit continued to strengthen against the US dollar in early trade on Friday, supported by more positive market sentiment and pressure on the dollar in global markets.
At 10:27 am, the ringgit was at 3.9690 against the US dollar, up 0.28% since it opened early Friday in Asian trading.
The strengthening was also driven by US economic data showing a slowdown, thus changing investors' expectations on the country's monetary policy.
According to Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd Chief Economist, Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid, the US Dollar Index (DXY) fell 0.32 percent to 98.819 points, reflecting pressure on the currency in international trade.
At the same time, the US Treasury yields for two years and 10 years fell by two basis points, to 3.77 percent and 4.28 percent respectively, indicating more cautious investor sentiment towards the US economic outlook.
He also explained that the US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the fourth quarter of 2025 recorded a decline of 0.5 percent, lower than the market consensus expectation of 0.7 percent, and significantly down from 4.4 percent in the third quarter of the same year.
At the same time, core Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) inflation also showed a decline to 3.0 percent in February, compared to 3.1 percent previously.
This development strengthened speculation that the US Federal Reserve is likely to cut interest rates this year.
However, he stressed that geopolitical uncertainties and the development of a global ceasefire could still limit the ringgit's rise in the near term.
In the international market, the ringgit showed mixed performance against major world currencies.
The ringgit strengthened against the Japanese yen to 2.4981/5099 from 2.5028/5061 on Thursday and it weakened slightly against the euro to 4.6468/6684 from 4.6457/6515, and depreciated against the British pound to 5.3372/3621 from 5.3337/3404 previously.
As for regional currencies, the ringgit was also traded in a volatile mood. It weakened against the Singapore dollar to 3.1216/1366 from 3.1204/1246.
However, the ringgit strengthened slightly against the Thai baht to 12.3859/4517 from 12.3976/4201 previously.
The ringgit was also almost flat against the Philippine peso at 6.65/6.69 and little changed against the Indonesian rupiah at 232.6/233.7 compared to 232.8/233.2.
