Ringgit Ends Slightly Higher Against US Dollar

KUALA LUMPUR, July 3 (Bernama) -- The ringgit ended slightly higher against the US dollar today supported by improving crude oil prices, a dealer said. At 6 pm Wednesday, the local currency stood at 4.1350/1380 versus the US dollar compared with yesterday’s close of 4.1370/1400. At press time, oil benchmark Brent Crude was 0.98 per cent higher to US$63.01 per barrel while WTI Crude rose 0.84 per cent to US$56.72 per barrel. She said better ringgit performance today was also in tandem with most emerging Asian currencies on the back of a softer greenback overnight as the US dollar lost its grip following fading hopes for any near-term Sino-US trade deal. At the close, the ringgit traded mostly higher against a basket of major currencies. The local currency rose against the Singapore dollar to 3.0499/0532 from 3.0509/0542 on Tuesday, strengthened versus the pound to 5.1973/1035 from 5.2209/2255 and increased against the euro to 4.6672/6722 from 4.6773/6815. However, the ringgit weakened against the Japanese yen to 3.8379/8411 from 3.8199/8241. -- BERNAMA