US President Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs on semiconductors and pharmaceuticals, the latest in a series of measures threatening to upend international trade, are expected to weigh on risk asset sentiment.
“At the same time, investors are closely monitoring rising pressure within the BRICS bloc and emerging signs of tension in the fragile US-China trade truce.
“Trump’s swift and unpredictable policy actions, along with headline-driven developments, continue to fuel market uncertainty,” the analyst said.
Meanwhile, Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Afzanizam Rashid said the ringgit is expected to maintain its narrow range trade of around RM4.24 to RM4.25 against the greenback.
He noted that mixed signals from recent US Federal Reserve officials’ comments have lent support to the greenback, with the US dollar index (DXY) currently standing at 98.243 points, up 0.06%.
“The ringgit will continue to trade cautiously ahead of the release of the US consumer price index data tomorrow.
“Consensus estimates suggest that July’s inflation rate will edge higher to 2.8% from 2.7% previously, while core inflation is expected to rise to 3.0% from 2.9%,” he told Bernama.
He added that Malaysia’s second-quarter (Q2) gross domestic product (GDP) data for 2025, scheduled for release this Friday (Aug 18), will also be closely watched, with advance estimates released in July indicating that the economy expanded by 4.5% in Q2 2025 based on the preliminary data.
“So far, the industrial production index and services index grew at a slower pace of 2% and 5%, respectively, in Q2 2025, compared to 2.3% and 5.1% in the previous quarter,” he added.
“This suggests there could be a downside risk to the final GDP figure compared to the advance estimate,” he said.
At 8am, the local note appreciated to 4.2365/4.2515 against the greenback from last Friday’s close of 4.2420/4.2480.
At the opening, the ringgit traded higher against major currencies.
It went up against the yen to 2.8693/2.8796 from 2.8720/2.8763 at the close on Friday, improved against the euro to 4.9343/4.9517 from 4.9381/4.9451 and rose versus the British pound to 5.6951/5.7153 from 5.7034/5.7114.
The ringgit also gained against its regional peers.
It increased against the Singapore dollar to 3.2966/3.3086 from 3.3014/3.3064, jumped against the Thai baht to 13.0801/13.1381 from 13.1173/13.1419, was higher against the Indonesian rupiah at 260.0/261.0 from 260.3/260.8 and edged up against the Philippine peso to 7.42/7.45 from 7.43/7.44, previously.