Ringgit Tugs at Anchor as Fed Rate Hike Expectations Weigh In
The Malaysian ringgit ended in mixed performance against major currencies yesterday, despite expectations of further interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve (Fed) that continued to support the US dollar.
According to Afzanizam Abdul Rashid, chief economist at Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd, markets expect the Fed to raise interest rates by another 50 basis points this year, which would provide further support for the US dollar.
The ringgit initially started stronger, reaching RM4.0640 against the US dollar in the morning, but it could not maintain that strength and weakened to around RM4.0780 in the afternoon as the US dollar remained firm.
Against other major currencies, the ringgit gained against the euro, British pound, and Japanese yen, but declined against the Indonesian rupiah and Philippine peso.