KUALA LUMPUR, June 17 — The ringgit opened flat against the greenback today on muted demand as investors await for further market catalyst.
At 9am, the ringgit was quoted at 4.2700/2790, unmoved from yesterday’s close.
An analyst said as researchers found encouraging data that Dexamethasone, an anti-inflammatory drug could potentially assist in the battle against Covid-19, the increasing number of infections in Beijing has sparked a new wave of concern of a fresh outbreak.
“Until global counts show signs of slowing down and the Dexamethasone’s efficiency is proven in other regions, the market will continue to be under the dark clouds of the pandemic,” she said.
On the oil front, benchmark Brent crude surpassed the US$40 per barrel benchmark and is on the course of recovery, if the global economy continues its upward momentum.
Despite the current upswing, analysts cautioned that recovery would take a full two year due to the collapse of crude oil demand.
Meanwhile, against a basket of major currencies, the ringgit was traded higher.
It rose versus the Singapore dollar to 3.0647/0718 from 3.0713/0770 yesterday’s, flat vis-a-vis the Japanese yen at 3.9765/9860.
The local currency strengthen to 5.3665/3796 from 5.4058/4151 against the British pound and added against the euro to 4.8123/8241 from 4.8388/8480 yesterday. — Bernama
