Ringgit Opens Higher Against US Dollar On Solid Oil Prices

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 30 (Bernama) -- The ringgit opened higher against US dollar Wednesday on positive sentiment, boosted by oil prices which continued to trade on a solid footing, said an analyst. At 9.01 am, the local note firmed up to 4.0430/0470 against the greenback from Tuesday's close of 4.0480/0510. Axi chief global market strategist Stephen Innes said the ringgit seemed to be in a happy medium around the 4.05 level, after a tumultuous year for oil-linked currencies which included the ringgit. “We should see many local traders pack it in for the year today, but the ringgit should continue to trade on a stable note despite some year-end profit-taking hitting global equities,” Innes told Bernama. As at time of writing, benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.39 per cent to trade at US$51.29 per barrel. Meanwhile, the ringgit was traded mostly lower against other major currencies. It improved against the Singapore dollar at 3.0472/0504 from 3.0484/0509 on Wednesday, but eased slightly versus the euro to 4.9595/9661 from 4.9584/9625 yesterday. The local note fell marginally versus the Japanese yen to 3.9063/9109 from 3.9039/9080 and dropped against the British pound to 5.4625/4691 from 5.4527/4587 previously. -- BERNAMA