KUALA LUMPUR, March 4 — The ringgit finished easier against the US dollar on Thursday, weighed by weaker oil prices despite Bank Negara Malaysia's decision to maintain the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) at 1.75 per cent, a dealer said.
At 6pm, the ringgit fell to 4.0550/0600 against the greenback from 4.0490/0530 at Wednesday's close.
Axi chief global market strategist Stephen Innes said the local noted had indicated a favourable tone yesterday after the government eased mobility restrictions across most states.
At the time of writing, Brent crude fell 0.28 per cent to US$63.89 per barrel.
Meanwhile, OANDA Asia Pacific senior market analyst Jeffrey Halley said the central bank's decision to keep the rate unchanged was expected particularly in the current Covid-19 pandemic situation.
“This will be a wise course of action given that any bond-driven US dollar strength would weigh on the ringgit. The ebbing of Covid-19 cases will provide BNM with the confidence to keep the monetary policy at the current rate,” he said.
Meanwhile, the ringgit was traded higher against other major currencies.
It rose against the Singapore dollar to 3.0416/0460 from 3.0446/0487 on Wednesday, went up versus the British pound to 5.6470/6556 from 5.6605/6673, and strengthened against the euro to 4.8786/8854 from 4.8993/9058 yesterday.
The local currency appreciated vis-a-vis the Japanese yen to 3.7774/7827 from 3.7877/7921 yesterday.
— Bernama
