The Malaysian ringgit and Philippine peso rose against a broadly weaker dollar on Monday, while the Indian rupee continued strengthening in both offshore and onshore markets. The dollar drifted lower against a backdrop of verbal sparring between the United States and China over Beijing's currency policy. However, market speculation of any near-term yuan rise receded after officials pledged to keep the yuan steady in comments coinciding with President Barack Obama's first trip to China.
RUPEE: Dollar selling in rupee NDFs spilled to the spot market as the US currency stayed weak against majors, with gains in Indian shares also boosting sentiment. "Obama is in China for two days, so there is some speculation of yuan appreciation which helped push down the rupee NDFs on Friday and that is continuing even today," said a dealer with a private bank in India.
"Plus the euro is higher today, with gains in stocks adding to the positive sentiment," he added. One-month dollar/rupee NDFs were at 45.98/46.04 per dollar down from 46.27 on Friday, while the spot was at 46.05, up 0.5 percent on the day.
RINGGIT: The ringgit firmed 0.4 percent in line with euro and most other Asian currencies, and was expected to stay within 3.3550-3.3650 per dollar on Monday. "Its movement is very orderly and does not require any central bank action like in Taiwan or Korea," a Kuala Lumpur- based trader said. Dealers watched the development on the yuan. "Unless China bows to US pressure, it looks like yuan appreciation is going to be very slow and orderly, say by 1 to 3 percent a year," a dealer at a Malaysian bank said.
PESO: The peso rose 0.4 percent to 46.52 per dollar, but its gains were curbed by profit taking in the stock market.
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