Kuala lumpur: The ringgit opened slightly higher against the US dollar on Tuesday as market sentiment continued to focus on developments in West Asia. At 8 am, the local unit rose to 3.9705/9760 against the greenback from Monday's close of 3.9720/9770.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid stated that market sentiment continued to revolve around the situation in West Asia, as the United States and Iran continued negotiations for a resolution, which, to a large extent, remained highly elusive. The latest development indicated that US President Donald Trump had called off plans to attack Iran as serious negotiations with Tehran are ongoing.

Mohd Afzanizam noted that despite ongoing negotiations between the US and Iran, the rise in crude oil prices showed that concerns over escalating geopolitical tensions persisted. West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude oil prices rose 3.07 percent and 2.60 percent to US$108.66 per barrel and US$112.10 per barrel, respectively. Meanwhile, the US dollar index fell 0.34 percent to 98.947 points.

As such, Mohd Afzanizam mentioned that the ringgit would likely trade within a narrow range of 3.96 to 3.97 against the US dollar today. At the opening, the ringgit traded lower against a basket of major currencies. The local note weakened against the British pound, slipped against the euro, and eased against the Japanese yen.

The ringgit also traded mostly lower against its regional peers. It weakened against the Thai baht and depreciated against the Singapore dollar. However, the local currency edged higher against the Indonesian rupiah and was little changed against the Philippine peso.