The ringgit opened weaker against the US dollar on Friday (24 July) as global markets turned cautious following higher crude oil prices and renewed trade concerns after the Trump administration announced additional tariffs on major trading partners, Bernama reported.
At 8.01am, the ringgit was quoted at RM4.0925/0980 against the greenback compared with RM4.0870/0910 at Thursday’s close.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said market sentiment was affected after US President Donald Trump announced additional import tariffs of between 10% and 12.5% on 60 economies, including Malaysia, citing concerns over forced labour practices.
“Trump remains adamant on using tariffs as a means to boost his economy after the major setback in February when the US Supreme Court annulled the previous tariff measures,” he told Bernama.
He expects the ringgit to trade cautiously against the US dollar, with the local currency likely to move within the RM4.08 to RM4.10 range today.
The latest tariff announcement came as investors also monitored rising crude oil prices, which have added pressure to inflation concerns and supported a more cautious risk environment.
Despite the softer performance against the US dollar, the ringgit strengthened against most major currencies at the opening.
The local currency appreciated against the Japanese yen to 2.4971/5006 from 2.5015/5041 at Thursday’s close. It also strengthened against the euro to 4.6556/6619 from 4.6641/6686 and gained against the British pound to 5.4483/4557 from 5.4647/4701.
Against regional currencies, the ringgit edged higher versus the Singapore dollar at 3.1651/1696 compared with 3.1667/1701 previously.
However, it weakened against the Indonesian rupiah to 228.1/228.5 from 227.8/228.1 and slipped against the Thai baht to 12.0937/1153 from 12.0860/1021.
The ringgit was unchanged against the Philippine peso at 6.62/6.64 from Thursday’s closing level.
