Ringgit extends gain against US dollar in opening trade
Malaysia's economy was forecast to grow by 4.5% in the second quarter based on advance gross domestic product (GDP) estimates last Friday, slightly outpacing the previous quarter's 4.4%.
At 8am, the ringgit rose to 4.2330/4.2540 against the greenback, compared to Friday's close of 4.2410/4.2455.
However, Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Afzanizam Rashid sees the ringgit remaining in a narrow range as concerns over US tariffs continue to affect market sentiment as the Aug 1 deadline looms. 'As such, expect ringgit to range between RM4.24 and RM4.25 today as traders remain fairly cautious,' he noted.
At the opening, the ringgit was traded mostly higher against a basket of major currencies.
It dipped against the Japanese yen to 2.8518/2.8662 from 2.8517/2.8549, strengthened against the British pound to 5.6790/5.7072 from 5.6999/5.7060 and advanced versus the euro to 4.9230/4.9474 from 4.9336/4.9388 at Friday's close.
The local note also trended higher against most Asean currencies.
It rose vis-à-vis the Singapore dollar to 3.2944/3.3110 from 3.3027/3.3065, gained against the Thai baht to 13.0608/13.1337 from 13.3027/13.3065, appreciated against the Indonesian rupiah to 259.7/261.1 from 260.2/260.6 and edged up versus the Philippine peso to 7.40/7.44 from 7.41/7.43. previously.
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