TH: Drop in Brent crude price puts pressure on ringgit
KUALA LUMPUR, March 9 — The ringgit closed lower against the US dollar today on weaker demand for the local note, amid weaker oil prices and strong US jobs data.
At 5pm, the ringgit ended at 3.6770/6790 against the greenback from 3.6515/6545 recorded last Friday.
A dealer said the ringgit depreciated to a six-year low today as Brent crude oil price fell to US$59 a barrel, raising concerns about Malaysia’s current account surplus.
“Emerging Asian currencies, including the ringgit, were negatively affected by the firm US jobs data for February, indicating a recovery in the US economy,” he added.
However, the ringgit was almost unchanged against the Singapore dollar at 2.6655/6677 from 2.6655/6681 on Friday, and depreciated against the yen to 3.0451/0473 from 3.0401/0436.
It appreciated against the British pound to 5.5530/5571 from 5.5550/5603 and improved to 4.0046/0075 from 4.0148/0192 against the euro. — Bernama
