KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit will likely trade higher versus the US dollar next week, boosted by Bank Negara Malaysia’s measures to support the local currency, an analyst said.
The central bank recently announced that exporters can only retain up to 25 per cent of export proceeds in foreign currency, so as to encourage more domestic trade in the ringgit.
Under the new measures, 75 per cent of all new export proceeds will have to be converted into ringgit.
“Most traders welcome the recent measures to help strengthen the ringgit,” the analyst said, adding that the ringgit is expected to trade between the 4.42 and 4.35 level.
Meanwhile, Affin Hwang Investment Bank Vice-President/Retail Research Head Datuk Dr Nazri Khan Adam Khan said the ringgit will be slightly lower amid a strong dollar on the global market.
“The greenback is on the uptrend following the European Central Bank’s (ECB) decision to extend its bond buying by nine months until end-2017,” he told Bernama.
In the meantime, the ringgit will also trade in a cautious mode ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate announcement.
For the week just ended, the ringgit was traded higher at 4.4215/4255 against the greenback from 4.4500/4550 last Friday.
It ended higher against other major currencies.
The ringgit appreciated against the yen to 3.8643/8681 last Friday from 3.9128/9179, and increased against the Singapore dollar to 3.1067/1100 from 3.1274/1327.
The local unit rose to 4.6974/6034 against the euro from 4.7375/7432 and improved against the British pound to 5.5768/5832 from 5.6057/6137.--BERNAMA