KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 16 — The ringgit opened lower against the US dollar, influenced by the weak sentiment as investors retreated to the sidelines while awaiting political developments in the country today, said an analyst.
At 9am, the local note stood at 4.2410/2435 versus the greenback compared with 4.2365/2385 at Friday’s close.
Yesterday, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Special Functions) Datuk Seri Mohd Redzuan Yusof was reported to have said that Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was expected to make a special announcement today.
Meanwhile, on a positive note, Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd economist Adam Mohamed Rahim said the ringgit might get some support from the latest relaxation of movement restrictions announced on Sunday involving 11 economic sectors for states with at least 50 per cent of their adult population having been fully vaccinated.
“Moreover, working capacities for sectors such as manufacturing, construction and mining have been allowed to increase according to the percentage of fully vaccinated workers,” he told Bernama.
The local note was also traded mostly lower against a basket of major currencies.
It declined against the Singapore dollar to 3.1292/1313 from 3.1187/1207, and fell against the Japanese yen to 3.8731/8753 from 3.8409/8427 at Friday’s close.
The ringgit depreciated vis-a-vis the euro to 5.0023/0052 from 4.9775/9798 at the end of last week and eased against the British pound at 5.8768/8802 from 5.8476/8504 previously.
— Bernama
