KUALA LUMPUR, March 19 — The ringgit reversed Thursday’s gains to open lower against the US dollar today amid falling crude oil prices and a spike in the United States (US) Treasury yields.
At 9am, the local unit fell 120 basis points (bps) to 4.1210/1260 versus the greenback from 4.1090/1140 at Thursday’s close.
Reports said that the overnight benchmark Brent crude oil dropped 6.9 per cent to settle at US$63.28 per barrel.
According to Axi chief global market strategist Stephen Innes, the weakening oil price was dragged by a combination of short-term demand and longer-term supply concerns.
Meanwhile, he said the US 10-year Treasury yield jumped seven bps to 1.71 per cent on Thursday, recording the highest level since Jan 23, 2020.
“With oil prices tanking and US yields shooting higher, it should prove to be a toxic combination for the ringgit in the near term that remains tethered to the US rates market proclivities,” he told Bernama in a note today.
At the opening bell, the local currency was traded mixed against major currencies.
It declined against the Singapore dollar to 3.0623/0667 from 3.0616/0663 at Thursday’s close and fell against the Japanese yen to 3.7783/7832 from 3.7677/7733 yesterday.
The ringgit strengthened against the British pound to 5.7307/7380 from 5.7349/7452 but was flat versus the euro at 4.9061/9137 compared with 4.9061/9138 previously.
— Bernama
