Ringgit closes lower against greenback for 3rd day

KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit closed lower against the US dollar for the third consecutive day today on subdued sentiment despite the US Federal Reserve’s (Fed) decision to cut interest rate.

At 6pm, the ringgit slipped to 4.1900/1930 against the US dollar from 4.1820/1860 on Wednesday.

A dealer said the interest rate cut was widely expected to help sustain US record-long economic expansion.

However, he said the signal from the Fed that it would set a higher bar for further reductions drove the greenback higher against other major currencies.

“In the wake of the decision, Asian currencies not only have to contend with a firmer greenback complex but also the potential vulnerability to another bout of risk aversion,” he said.

The ringgit was also mostly lower against a basket of other major currencies.

It appreciated against the Singapore dollar to 3.0406/0349 from 3.0423/0464 at Wednesday’s close but depreciated against the Japanese yen to 3.8789/8496 from 3.8640/8688.

The local unit contracted versus the British pound to 5.2262/2316 from 5.2116/2174 and eased against the euro to 4.6341/6391 from 4.6199/6259. — Bernama