KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 29 — The ringgit ended marginally lower against the US dollar and other major currencies on Monday as traders and investors remained cautious ahead of the United States Federal Reserve (US Fed) interest rate outlook for next year.

At 6 pm, the local currency eased to 4.0580/0625 against the greenback from 4.0470/0535 at Friday’s close.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said market activity is likely to be subdued toward the year-end due to a lack of fresh catalysts, given the holiday-shortened week.

“Additionally, the ongoing fiscal consolidation exercise, expected to continue into 2026, could influence assessments by credit rating agencies,” he told Bernama.

Therefore, Mohd Afzanizam noted that the RM4.00 level remains a key psychological and technical resistance for the ringgit next year.

“For now, market participants remain guarded over the ringgit’s near-term direction,” he said.

At the opening, the ringgit was traded lower against a basket of major currencies.

It depreciated against the Japanese yen to 2.5956/5987 from 2.5866/5909 at last Friday’s close, declined versus the British pound at 5.4742/4803 from 5.4570/4657, and fell vis-a-vis the euro to 4.7787/7840 from 4.7629/7706 last week.

Similarly, the local currency was mostly lower against its Asean peers.

It slid against the Singapore dollar to 3.1572/1610 from 3.1497/1550 on Friday, inched down against the Indonesian rupiah to 241.7/242.1 from 241.6/242.2 and was marginally lower vis-a-vis the Philippines’ peso to 6.90/6.91 from 6.89/6.90; however, it gained versus the Thai baht to 12.8985/9190 from 13.0212/0484 previously. — Bernama