KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit opened marginally lower against the US dollar amid expectations of higher US bond yields ahead of the release of the March 2021 US Consumer Price Index (CPI) later today.
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At 9am, the local note was 10 basis points easier at 4.1320/1360 against the greenback from 4.1310/1350 at Monday’s close.
The losses, however, were capped by the stabilising crude oil prices which saw benchmark Brent crude inched up 0.08 per cent to US$63.33 per barrel at the time of writing.
“More broadly, the ringgit remains mired amid conflicting signal around stabilising crude oil prices versus expectations of higher US yields (strong US dollar) ahead of this week’s US economic docket,” Axi chief global markets strategist Stephen Innes told Bernama.
Meanwhile, Innes said the local note performance was also pressured by the record COVID-19 infections in Thailand, India and the Philippines.
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“Because of the new virus waves coming onshore in Thailand, India and the Philippines, I think regional virus concerns are overall weighing on local sentiment, primarily via countries with slow vaccination rollout, which might be contributing to some market outflows,” he said.
At the opening bell, the ringgit was mixed against other major currencies.
It was nearly flat against the Singapore dollar to 3.0815/0850 from 3.0810/0851 on Monday and slipped against the euro to 4.9183/9235 from 4.9171/9227.
Against the yen, the local unit strengthened to 3.7711/7758 from 3.7785/7832, while vis-a-vis the pound, it advanced to 5.6670/6841 from 5.6743/6807 yesterday.- BERNAMA