Kuala lumpur: The ringgit closed higher against regional peers, gaining ground against most major currencies today as investors remained attentive to developments in the United States-Iran negotiations and the forthcoming US-China talks. Despite this upward trend, the ringgit saw a slight dip against the US dollar, closing at 3.9220/9260, compared to 3.9185/9230 at last Friday's close.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid highlighted that market focus was primarily on the United States-Iran negotiations, which have shown limited progress thus far. Investors are also keenly anticipating the high-profile meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, scheduled for May 14-15, 2026.

Mohd Afzanizam noted that the US Federal Reserve (Fed) is unlikely to reduce interest rates in the near future. The recent appointment of new Fed chairman Kevin Warsh is also attracting attention, with market participants eager to see how he will manage the balance between growth and inflation.

In the foreign exchange market, the ringgit showed a robust performance against a basket of major currencies. It appreciated against the Japanese yen, closing at 2.4955/4983 from 2.5010/5040, and strengthened versus the British pound, ending at 5.3331/3383 from 5.3354/3416. However, it slightly weakened against the euro, closing at 4.6150/6197 from 4.6121/6174.

The ringgit also advanced against regional currencies. It rose against the Singapore dollar to 3.0887/0921 from 3.0910/0948, strengthened versus the Thai baht to 12.0900/1083 from 12.1640/1844, gained against the Indonesian rupiah to 225.2/225.5 from 225.4/225.7, and advanced against the Philippine peso to 6.41/6.42 from 6.46/6.47 previously.