KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit was little changed against the US dollar this morning as investors await the US nonfarm payroll (NFP) data to be released later today, said an analyst. 

At 9 am, the ringgit climbed to 4.6930/6980 versus the greenback from Thursday's close of 4.6935/6965.  

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the US NFP data is expected to hit 186,000 in May from 175,000 previously, while the jobless rate is likely to remain at 3.9 per cent. 

"The ringgit is likely to remain in a narrow range today. Should the NFP came in lower than expected, it might lead to weaker dollar.

"Otherwise, the greenback is expected to remain fairly strong as the Federal Reserve (Fed) is seen not to be in a hurry to ease its monetary policy," he told Bernama. 

Mohd Afzanizam also noted that global interest rates appear to have peaked, with the European Central Bank (ECB) becoming the latest to join the rate cut chorus, following Bank of Canada's rate reduction decision this week. 

The ringgit traded lower against a basket of major currencies. 

The local unit declined versus the Japanese yen to 3.0132/0166 from 3.0094/0113, it depreciated vis-a-vis the British pound to 6.0014/0078 from 5.9997/6.0035 previously and weakened against the euro at 5.1107/1161 from 5.1065/1098 at Thursday's close.

Meanwhile, the ringgit was mixed against its ASEAN peers.

It declined against the Thai baht to 12.8921/9101 from 12.8660/8798 at yesterday's close and slipped versus the Singapore dollar to 3.4874/4914 from 3.4842/4866. 

Meanwhile, the local note was almost flat against the Philippine peso and Indonesia rupiah at 8.01/8.03 from 8.01/8.02 and 288.5/288.9 from 288.6/288.8, respectively.