Hanoi:The ringgit opened higher against the US dollar on Monday, buoyed by the government's promise of fiscal discipline following the presentation of Budget 2027 last Friday. At 8 am, the ringgit improved to 4.0820/0880 against the greenback from Friday's close of 4.0830/0875.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid, chief economist at Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd, noted that the government's commitment to fiscal discipline is evident in its goal to reduce the fiscal deficit to 3.3 percent of the gross domestic product by 2027, down from an estimated 3.6 percent this year. This approach is expected to help maintain Malaysia's sovereign credit rating, offering strong support for the ringgit.

Despite this, external conditions remain uncertain, particularly due to developments in West Asia and their potential effects on global crude oil prices. This uncertainty places focus on whether the US Federal Reserve will consider increasing interest rates this month. Consequently, the ringgit-US dollar pair is anticipated to maintain a tight-range bias.

As the market opened, the ringgit primarily traded higher against a range of major and ASEAN currencies. It strengthened against the British pound to 5.4038/4117 from 5.4063/4123 at Friday’s close, and rose against the euro to 4.5735/5802 from 4.5807/5858. However, it weakened slightly against the Japanese yen to 2.5806/5846 from 2.5791/5821.

In relation to ASEAN currencies, the ringgit edged up against the Singapore dollar to 3.1876/1928 from 3.1896/1934 at Friday’s close and increased against the Thai baht to 12.1720/1957 from 12.1735/1909. It also ticked up against the Indonesian rupiah to 228.0/228.4 from 228.1/228.4 at Friday's close, while remaining unchanged against the Philippine peso at 6.50/6.51.