The ringgit may trade around the 4.19 level against the USD as the DXY is expected to hover around the 97.0-97.5 level this week, Kenanga Research said in a note.
It said that the greenback’s direction is expected to be heavily influenced by the US January jobs report and the development of the Ukraine-Russia crisis. Due to the lack of market catalysts, the local note is seen to track the direction of the crude oil prices while remaining pressured by a stronger USD.
Reviewing last week’s performance, Kenanga said that the ringgit continued to weaken against the greenback last week as the USD index (DXY) jumped to above the 97.0 level due to the Ukraine-Russia tensions and a more hawkish Fed.
However, It said that the local note managed to appreciate against other major currencies as Brent crude oil price breached the USD90.0/barrel (Jan 28) threshold for the first time since October 2014.
