KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 23): The ringgit extended its weakness in the early session against the US dollar on Tuesday (Aug 23), amid a lack of fresh catalysts.
At 9.39am, the local currency stood at 4.4860/4890 against the greenback, from Monday’s close at 4.4855/4870.
ActivTrades trader Dyogenes Rodrigues Diniz said the recent bullish move had pushed the US dollar up to its 2020 high against the ringgit at 4.4500, and the pair is now heading towards the 2017 high of 4.5000.
“Investors will have a better view of the market after the release of US new home sales data for the month of July (forecast: 575,000), which should provide a snapshot of the US real estate sector,” he said.
From a technical standpoint, due to the major bullish movement over the past few months, it is possible that the US dollar/ringgit pair will make a bearish retracement over the next few weeks, said Diniz.
“The main resistance point on the daily chart is at 4.5000, which is close to the all-time high of the US dollar/ringgit [pair]. If the rate breaks below 4.4700, there could be room for a bigger pullback towards the 4.3600 region within a few weeks,” he added.
Meanwhile, the ringgit was traded mostly higher against a basket of major currencies.
The local note appreciated against the euro to 4.4595/4625 from 4.4886/4901 at Monday’s close, and strengthened against the pound to 5.2805/2836 from 5.2947/2965.
It also improved vis-a-vis the yen to 3.2661/2685 from 3.2786/2800 on Monday, but slipped against the Singapore dollar to 3.2182/2129 from 3.2147/2163.-BERNAMA