KUALA LUMPUR: HSBC expects the ringgit to trade around RM4.30 against the US dollar by year-end as the greenback is projected to remain strong broadly against other major currencies, according its head of emerging markets foreign exchange research Paul Mackel.
“The US dollar is still going to be strong in 2019, it’s a non-consensus view. I believe that the market is still trying to sell the dollar at this juncture because they think that the Fed could be a lot more dubious going forward, but we think that it is premature to jump in to this conclusion,” Mackel told a media briefing here today.
This is given that the US economy continues to hold up and the softening of the Chinese economy is giving some downward pressure to other major currencies, including Asian currencies, he added.
“But that is not necessarily a very negative view on the ringgit, it is more about the broad dollar staying strong (this year),” he added.
