Kuala lumpur: The ringgit opened firmer against the US dollar on Friday, extending gains, after United States (US) economic data reinforced expectations of an imminent interest rate cut at the Federal Reserve's next policy meeting, an economist said. At 8 am, the local note rose to 4.2205/2405 against the greenback from Thursday's close of 4.2340/2385.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid noted that US initial jobless claims increased more than expected to 226,000 last week, surpassing market forecasts of 221,000. He mentioned that this increase marked a second consecutive weekly rise, supporting views that signs of labor market weakness are emerging, although Federal Open Market Committee members believe more data is necessary before their September meeting.

Dr Mohd Afzanizam also highlighted that the US Dollar Index fell by 0.09 percent to 98,084 points as the likelihood of a September rate cut increases. On the domestic front, he mentioned that the ringgit could remain supported after experiencing selling pressure in the previous afternoon session. He expects the ringgit against the US dollar to hover around RM4.22 to RM4.23 today.

The ringgit showed mixed performance against a basket of major and regional currencies in early trade. It eased against the Japanese yen to 2.8750/8888 from 2.8732/8765 on Thursday and weakened against the British pound to 5.6770/7039 from 5.6596/6656. However, it strengthened against the euro to 4.9283/9516 from 4.9411/9463.

Against regional peers, the local unit demonstrated strength, edging up against the Singapore dollar to 3.2906/3064 from 3.2973/3013 and appreciating against the Thai baht to 13.0653/1346 from 13.0954/1146. The ringgit also gained against the Philippine peso to 7.39/7.44 from 7.42/7.44 and firmed versus the Indonesian rupiah to 259.1/260.4 from 259.9/260.3.