KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 19 — The ringgit and the Philippine peso were among the ASEAN currencies weighed down by a stronger US dollar at the close today after the latest Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes signalled the possibility of an interest rate hike, said an economist.
At 6pm, the ringgit eased to 3.9045/9125 versus the greenback from Monday’s close of 3.8945/9055.
The Philippine peso closed lower at 57.996 against the US dollar today, down from its previous close of 57.861.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the latest FOMC minutes showed that the possibility of an interest rate hike cannot be ruled out by the markets.
“This is because several participants in the FOMC meeting suggested a two-sided description should be embedded in their communique to the public, especially when the inflation could stay above the target level,” he told Bernama.
As such, he said the ringgit against the US dollar was seen to gyrate around 3.9110 and 3.9193 today.
At the close, the ringgit traded higher against a basket of major currencies.
It appreciated versus the Japanese yen to 2.5221/5275 from 2.5356/5430 at Monday’s close, strengthened against the euro to 4.6073/6168 from 4.6204/6335 yesterday, and rose vis-a-vis the British pound to 5.2730/2838 from 5.3137/3287 previously.
The local note traded mostly higher against its Asean peers.
The ringgit improved versus the Singapore dollar to 3.0817/0882 from 3.0860/0949 yesterday, was higher versus the Thai baht at 12.5196/5521 from 12.5205/5619, edged up against the Indonesian rupiah to 231.1/231.6 from 231.4/232.2 at Monday’s close, and was easier against the Philippine peso at 6.73/6.75 from 6.71/6.74 previously.
Bursa Malaysia Bhd and its subsidiaries were closed on February 17, 2026 and February 18, 2026 in conjunction with the Chinese New Year public holiday. — Bernama
