KUALA LUMPUR, March 2 — The ringgit retreated today after making gains yesterday to end lower against the US dollar, due to weaker demand, amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict and higher oil prices, a dealer said.
At 6pm, the local note stood at 4.1935/1955 versus the greenback compared with 4.1920/1945 at Tuesday’s close.
A dealer said oil prices continued their uptrend on Wednesday, as sanctions on Russian banks following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine hampered trade finance for crude shipment.
Some traders opted to avoid Russian supplies in an already tight market, he said.
Meanwhile, another dealer said the market will be on the lookout for data from the Automatic Data Processing (ADP) Non-Farm Employment Change in the United States later today, which can provide valuable insights into the labour market situation in the US.
At the close, the ringgit was traded lower against a basket of other major currencies.
It strengthened versus the Singapore dollar to 3.0882/0899 from 3.0944/0967 at the close yesterday and appreciated vis-a-vis the British pound to 5.5807/5834 from 5.6231/6265.
The local currency rose against the yen to 3.6399/6419 from 3.6519/6544 on Tuesday and went up versus the euro to 4.6481/6503 from 4.6934/6962 previously.
— Bernama
