KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 15 — The ringgit fell further against the US dollar at the opening bell today, as traders moved into other safe-haven currencies like the Japanese yen after the United States (US) inflation data for August 2021 revealed a slower-than-expected expansion pace.
At 9.01am, the local note eased to 4.1620/1670 against the greenback from 4.1615/1640 at yesterday's close.
ActivTrades trader Dyogenes Rodrigues Diniz said the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) grew 5.3 per cent in August 2021, showing lower-than-expected inflation in the world’s largest economy.
“This may cause the US Federal Reserve (US Fed) to take a little longer to start the tapering process, which could be positive for the greenback,” he told Bernama.
From a technical point of view, Diniz said the US dollar-ringgit upward movement over the last two days could be interpreted as the beginning of an ignition movement, which could bring the currency pair to the 4.2400 level in a few days.
“Still, investors will be paying attention to any details about monetary policy coming from the US Fed, as this could completely change the current scenario,” he added.
At the opening, the ringgit was traded mostly higher against a basket of major currencies, except against the Japanese yen where it had weakened to 3.7985/8034 from 3.7811/7834 at yesterday’s close.
The ringgit advanced to 3.0974/1014 vis-a-vis the Singapore dollar from 3.0987/1008 previously, and strengthened against the pound to 5.7444/7513 from 5.7687/7721 previously.
The local unit also ticked up against the euro to 4.9132/9191 from 4.9164/9193 at yesterday’s close. — Bernama
