The ringgit opened slightly lower against the US dollar on Thursday but strengthened against most major currencies, as stronger-than-expected US economic data supported the greenback.
At 8am, the ringgit was quoted at 4.0790/0860 against the US dollar, compared with Wednesday’s close of 4.0785/0820.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the US final gross domestic product (GDP) for the second quarter of 2026 grew 2.2%, exceeding the market consensus of 1.5%.
He said US employment data also came in stronger than expected, with the Automatic Data Processing (ADP) employment change rising by 90,000 in September, compared with the market forecast of 73,000.
“Following this, the odds of a rate hike in October fell from more than 70% to below 50% currently,” he told Bernama.
Meanwhile, the US Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, remained at 3.4% in August, below the consensus estimate of 3.7%.
Mohd Afzanizam said the US Dollar Index (DXY) initially slipped to 101.05 points before recovering to 101.37.
He said markets had reassessed expectations surrounding an October rate hike, although the possibility remained open given the strength of recent labour market data.
The ringgit is expected to trade between RM4.08 and RM4.09 against the US dollar on Thursday ahead of the release of US non-farm payrolls (NFP) data on Friday.
Against other major currencies, the ringgit strengthened against the euro to 4.6203/6282 from 4.6324/6363, while rising against the British pound to 5.4104/4197 from 5.4162/4209.
It also appreciated against the Japanese yen to 2.5887/5933 from 2.5969/5993.
Against selected Asean currencies, the ringgit gained against the Singapore dollar to 3.1917/1977 from 3.1943/1973 and strengthened against the Thai baht to 12.1341/1611 from 12.1521/1666.
The local currency was little changed against the Indonesian rupiah at 227.9/228.4 compared with 227.9/228.2 previously, while remaining unchanged against the Philippine peso at 6.51/6.52.
