Ringgit ends higher against US dollar

KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit ended higher against the US dollar today following the European Central Bank's (ECB) decision to leave interest rates unchanged, propelling investors to show more interest in assets of emerging markets, dealers said.
At 6 pm, the local unit stood at 4.2820/2850 against the greenback compared with Thursday's close of 4.2900/2930.
FXTM Research Analyst Lukman Otunuga told Bernama it was widely expected that the ECB would stay put on interest rates.
"With President Mario Draghi's optimistic remarks fuelling speculation of quantitative easing tapering by the ECB, investors may seize this opportunity to obtain further clues on whether the central bank would announce plans to reduce its bond-buying programme in September," he added.
The ringgit traded lower against other currencies.
It slid against the Singapore dollar to 3.1375/1410 from 3.1307/1340 on Thursday and declined against the yen to 3.8362/8406 from 3.8174/8218. 
The local note fell against the pound to 5.5692/5744 from 5.5620/5663 and declined against the euro at 4.9868/9916 from 4.9348/9387. — Bernama