Kuala lumpur: The ringgit opened higher against the US dollar on Wednesday, in anticipation of Malaysia's official second quarter (2Q) gross domestic product (GDP) data, which is set to be released on August 14, according to an economist.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, at 8 am, the local currency appreciated to 4.0895/0950 against the greenback, compared to the previous day's close of 4.0905/0940. Dr. Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid, chief economist at Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd, expressed optimism about the economy's potential growth, projecting a 5.8 percent expansion in the 2Q, driven by robust domestic performance.

He noted, "The Malaysian economy remained fairly resilient, which could provide further support for the ringgit." Consequently, he anticipated that the ringgit would stabilize around RM4.08-RM4.09 against the US dollar.

In contrast, the US Dollar Index (DXY) remained relatively unchanged as market participants awaited the United States (US) consumer price index (CPI) data due later in the day. Dr. Mohd Afzanizam observed that the DXY was hovering around 99.72-99.89 points, with consensus estimates predicting a slight moderation in the US CPI to 3.4 percent from June's actual print of 3.5 percent.

Despite the ringgit's performance against the US dollar, it displayed mixed results against a basket of major and regional currencies. The local currency strengthened against the Japanese yen to 2.5673/5709 from 2.5680/5703 at Tuesday's close. However, it weakened against the euro, sliding to 4.7205/7269 from 4.7188/7228, and eased against the British pound to 5.5241/5315 from 5.5238/5285 previously.

Regionally, the ringgit showed a mixed trend, appreciating against the Indonesian rupiah to 228.9/229.3 from 229.0/229.3 but declining against the Thai baht to 12.3356/3585 from 12.3323/3481 previously. It also decreased against the Singapore dollar to 3.1952/1997 from 3.1930/1962 at the previous close and traded almost unchanged versus the Philippine peso at 6.67/6.69 from 6.68/6.69.