At 6pm, the local currency depreciated to 4.6380/4.6425 against the greenback from yesterday’s closing of 4.6285/4.6310.

The local currency opened slightly higher at 4.6250/4.6290 against the greenback.

“Markets are tough now, and the US dollar is considered a safe-haven asset to park money, therefore, investors are flocking to buy the greenback,” the analyst said.

“This is the reason why the US dollar is up against all currencies, not only the ringgit. Investors are selling British pounds and euros due to uncertainties such as global recession fears and an energy crisis (in Europe),” he added.

The ringgit was also traded easier against a basket of major currencies.

It fell vis-a-vis the euro to 4.4951/4.4995 from 4.4184/4.4208 at yesterday’s close and eased against the British pound to 5.0392/5.0441 from yesterday’s 4.9409/4.9436.

The local note also depreciated against the Japanese yen to 3.2050/3.2084 from 3.1974/3.1993 and declined versus the Singapore dollar to 3.2228/3.2264 from 3.1954/3.1975 previously.