KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 17 — The ringgit extended yesterday’s gains to close firmer today, tracking the local stock market which continued to rally ahead of the mid-term review of the 11th Malaysia Plan (11MP) to be tabled in Parliament tomorrow.
At 6pm, the local unit improved to 4.1490/1530 against the greenback from 4.1515/1555 on Tuesday.
A dealer said investor risk sentiment had improved amid easing US-Saudi Arabia tension, which was reflected across global equity markets, including Bursa Malaysia.
“The improved calmness in the markets has restored investors’ confidence in emerging market stocks and currencies, and this has subsequently offset investors’ concerns about the 11MP mid-term review earlier,” he said.
Previously, it was reported that some market participants turned jittery ahead of the 11MP mid-term review and chose to adopt a wait-and-see approach before investing in the country.
The Minister of Economic Affairs Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali had said that the mid-term review would focus on restoring investors’ confidence.
At the close, the ringgit was traded mostly higher against other major currencies, except versus the Singapore dollar.
The local unit climbed against the Japanese yen to 3.6965/7011 from 3.7027/7070 on Tuesday, rose against the British pound to 5.4522/4591 from 5.4804/4861 yesterday, while against the euro, it appreciated to 4.7987/8046 from 4.8041/8096 previously.
Vis-a-vis the Singapore dollar, the ringgit retreated to 3.0177/0212 from 3.0153/0189 on Tuesday. — Bernama
