KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit opened lower against the US dollar this morning, dampened by the stronger greenback on renewed expectation on a US interest rate hike.
At 9.05 am, the local unit was quoted at 4.0960/1010 against the US dollar from 4.0780/0840 at 5 pm on last Friday.
Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen had recently suggested an imminent interest rate hike if the US economy picked up pace and the labour market continued to improve.
The ringgit traded mixed against other major currencies. It fell against the Singapore dollar to 2.9651/9692 from Friday’s close of 2.9647/9706, but strengthened against the yen to 3.6978/7026 from 3.7171/7236.
The local unit slipped against the British pound to 5.9822/9899 from 5.9743/9839, but improved against the euro to 4.5482/5542 from 4.5588/5671. --Bernama