Ringgit ends lower ahead of FOMC meeting
The two-day FOMC meeting, taking place from July 29 to July 30 in Washington, is expected to provide key guidance on the US Federal Reserve's monetary policy direction.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said that in the meantime, the US labour market data will be the key focus tonight when the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey is published.
'Consensus estimates have pegged the number of job openings to decline to 7.55 million in June from 7.769 million in the prior month,' he told Bernama.
Thus far, he said, the US Dollar Index (DXY) has risen to as high as 99.01 but later hovered around 98.816 points.
At 6pm, the local note eased to 4.2320/4.2365 versus the greenback from yesterday's close of 4.2275/4.2345.
At the close, the ringgit ended higher against major currencies.
It rose against the Japanese yen to 2.8479/2.8511 from 2.8497/2.8546 at the close yesterday, appreciated versus the British pound to 5.6518/5.6578 from 5.6720/5.6814, and edged higher against the euro to 4.8990/4.9042 from 4.9331/4.9412 previously.
The ringgit was also mostly higher against regional peers.
It was higher against the Indonesian rupiah at 257.8/258.2 from 258.3/258.9, gained against the Singapore dollar to 3.2875/3.2913 from 3.2917/3.2974, improved against the Philippine peso to 7.38/7.39 from 7.39/7.41, but weakened versus the Thai baht to 13.0537/13.0740 from 13.0511/13.0787 previously.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Straits Times
26 minutes ago
- New Straits Times
Toyota cuts annual profit estimate, expects US$9.5 billion tariff hit
TOKYO: Toyota Motor cut its full-year operating profit forecast by 16 per cent on Thursday, expecting a nearly US$10 billion hit from US tariffs on imported cars and grappling with higher material prices and a stronger yen. The world's biggest automaker cut its operating profit forecast for the financial year to end-March 2026 to 3.2 trillion yen (US$21.7 billion), down from a previous outlook of 3.8 trillion yen. Toyota said it expects the US levies to reduce its profit by 1.4 trillion yen (US$9.50 billion) for the entire year. It had previously estimated a hit of 180 billion yen for April and May, but it had not issued a full-year projection until now. For the April to June first quarter, Toyota reported an operating profit of 1.17 trillion yen, down from 1.31 trillion yen a year earlier, but above the 902 billion yen average of seven analyst estimates compiled by LSEG. Toyota's first-quarter results highlight the pressure US import tariffs are placing on Japanese automakers, even as a trade agreement between Tokyo and Washington offers potential relief. Under the bilateral deal agreed last month, Japanese auto exports into the US would face a 15 per cent tariff, down from levies totalling 27.5 per cent previously. But a timeframe for the change to go into effect has yet to be announced. Last week, Toyota reported record global output and sales for the first half of the year, driven by strong demand in North America, Japan and China.
New Straits Times
an hour ago
- New Straits Times
Japan urges US to swiftly implement auto tariff cut
TOKYO: Japan's top trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa urged the US to swiftly implement measures agreed upon in a bilateral trade deal, including lowering automobile and auto parts tariffs, Japan's government said on Thursday. The request was made during Akazawa's 90-minute meeting with US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick in Washington on Wednesday, Japan's government said in a statement. The statement also said Akazawa sought confirmation and "immediate execution" of the two countries' agreement on US levies for other goods imported from Japan. The US agreed in a trade deal last month to lower existing tariffs on Japanese car imports to 15 per cent from levies totalling 27.5 per cent previously, but a timeframe for the change to go into effect was not announced. Duties on other Japanese goods would be cut to 15 per cent from 25 per cent effective Thursday, according to the agreement. Speaking in parliament on Tuesday, Akazawa said Japan wants to make sure goods such as Japanese beef, which already carries tariffs above 15 per cent, will not be charged the new 15 per cent rate as an additional tariff. Japan argues the two countries had agreed its goods imported to the US would be exempt from such "stacking," where they can be affected by multiple tariffs. But a Federal Register attached to President Donald Trump's July 31 executive order that addressed tariff rates for many trading partners showed a "no stacking" condition applies to the European Union, but no such clarification was issued for Japan. Japan's Asahi newspaper reported on Thursday, citing an unnamed White House official, that the US will stack the tariffs, adding 15 per cent on all Japanese imports without applying exceptions for items that already have tariff rates above 15 per cent. Given such discrepancies, Akazawa and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba have been under attack in parliament and domestic media for not crafting a written joint statement stipulating details of the trade deal with the US
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Sony hikes profit forecast seeing smaller trade war impact
TOKYO (Reuters) -Sony raised its full-year operating profit forecast on Thursday by 4% to 1.33 trillion yen ($9.01 billion), citing expectations of a smaller impact from U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war. Sony sees a tariff impact of 70 billion yen, compared to 100 billion yen forecast in May. It said the estimated impact is based on tariff rates as of August 1 and that the situation remained fluid. Japanese companies such as Honda Motor have trimmed their expected hit from tariffs amid a reduction in uncertainty with Japan striking a trade deal with the U.S. last month. Sony also said it sees a stronger profit outlook at its games business, boosted by sales of network services and favourable exchange rates. Sony was once well known as a maker of household electronics such as the "Walkman" portable cassette player but has become an entertainment behemoth spanning games, movies and music as well as a leading maker of image sensors for smartphones. The group reported a 36.5% rise in operating profit to 340 billion yen for the April-June quarter, beating the 288 billion yen average of eight analyst estimates compiled by LSEG. Shares in Sony, which announced results during the midday trading break, jumped 5%. Sony sold 2.5 million PlayStation 5 game consoles in the first quarter, a 4% rise compared to the same period a year earlier. Quarterly operating profit at the games business more than doubled to 148 billion yen due to higher sales of network services and games not made by Sony. The console industry was set to receive a boost this year from the launch of "Grand Theft VI" but the latest addition to the popular series has been delayed to 2026. Nintendo, which is seen as a potential beneficiary of GTA 6's delay, last week reported robust early demand for its new Switch 2 gaming device. Elsewhere in the conglomerate, Sony is preparing to cut its stake in its financial unit to less than 20% through a partial spin-off, with the business to list in Tokyo on September 29. ($1 = 147.5700 yen) (Reporting by Sam Nussey; Additional reporting by Chang-Ran Kim; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Christopher Cushing)
