The ringgit opened marginally higher against the US dollar on Wednesday as a weaker greenback supported the local currency, with investors reassessing the outlook for US interest rates following signals that the Federal Reserve could adopt a less aggressive monetary policy stance.
At 8am, the ringgit strengthened to RM4.0830/4.0880 against the US dollar, compared with Tuesday’s closing rate of RM4.0835/4.0880, according to Bernama.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the US Dollar Index (DXY) fell 0.40% to 102.810 points after Federal Reserve Bank of New York president John Williams indicated that the Fed Funds Rate might not be raised in 2027, as inflation was expected to ease gradually towards the central bank’s 2% target.
Williams also suggested that the US economy was not overheating and therefore did not warrant an aggressive interest rate increase, Afzanizam told Bernama.
However, investors remained cautious ahead of the latest US inflation figures. Consensus estimates projected that the country’s consumer price index inflation would rise to 3.6% in September, compared with 3.4% previously. Afzanizam said the figures could provide further direction for the ringgit, although market sentiment remained cautious.
Against other major currencies, the ringgit strengthened against the Japanese yen to RM2.5790/2.5823 per 100 yen, compared with RM2.5833/2.5864 at Tuesday’s close. However, it weakened against the British pound to RM5.4128/5.4195 from RM5.4057/5.4177 and eased against the euro to RM4.5734/4.5790 from RM4.5654/4.5704.
Regional currency movements were mixed. The ringgit strengthened against the Thai baht to RM12.1626/12.1848 per 100 baht from RM12.1663/12.1844, while edging lower against the Singapore dollar to RM3.1903/3.1950 from RM3.1902/3.1940.
The local currency was unchanged against the Indonesian rupiah at RM228.1/228.4 per 100 rupiah and remained flat against the Philippine peso at RM6.50/6.51 per 100 pesos.
Afzanizam expected the ringgit-US dollar pair to remain within a narrow trading range of RM4.07 to RM4.09 as markets assessed US monetary policy expectations and inflation data.
Source: Bernama, Ringgit Opens Marginally Higher Against US Dollar On Weaker DXY, published on 14 October 2026.
