KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 25 — The ringgit ended lower against the US dollar today in line with most emerging Asian currencies amid heightened level of uncertainty and possible delay in the US-China trade deal, said a dealer.
At 6pm, the ringgit settled at 4.1770/1800 against the greenback from yesterday’s close of 4.1700/1750.
Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the local currency depreciated by 0.1 per cent from Friday’s closing as issues surrounding the US-China trade negotiation continued to take the centre stage.
He said China’s promise to raise penalty over violations of the Intellectual Property Rights had instilled hopes that the trade negotiation could yield a favourable outcome, but the recent approval of the Hong Kong rights bill by the US House Representative and the Senate prompted a possible hurdle for the trade discussion.
“In any case, the foreign exchange markets continued to remain anxious about the trade war and its implication to the global economy.
“Already, we have seen the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development had revised their global growth projection for 2020 to 2.9 per cent from 3.0 per cent previously,” he told Bernama.
Meanwhile, the local note traded mixed against other major currencies.
The ringgit was easier against the Singapore dollar at 3.0603/0629 from 3.0590/0638 on Friday and slipped versus the British pound to 5.3804/3847 from 5.3672/3753.
The local note improved against the yen to 3.8367/8405 from 3.8412/8469 and appreciated against the euro to 4.5993/6043 from 4.6116/6188. — Bernama
